Blood and Tears
by I'mJustAnotherGamer
Summary: Sword Art Online has become a death game, and Kirito becomes despised once he reveals his identity as a beta tester. He finds solace in a girl his age named Asuna, and the two of them soon begin to develop feelings for each other. A different take on SAO, where Laughing Coffin has much more of a presence, the pain absorption is removed entirely, and there are now 120 floors.
1. Chapter 1

It was launch day of arguably the most anticipated game ever made: Sword Art Online, the first Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game. A launch title for the new VR platform, the NerveGear that had been in development for nearly seven years since it was announced in 2021. Now, in 2028, the game was finally being released to a crowd of 12,000 people lucky enough to reserve their copy. For 14-year-old Kazuto, this meant he would pick up his copy, go home, and start playing as soon as he possibly could. Kazuto had been patiently awaiting the game's release ever since it was announced and was even lucky enough to be one of the thousand beta testers for the game. The game itself took place in a complete fantasy environment, in a massive, floating castle named Aincrad. A World of Swords, as the game was advertised. From what he remembered, the gameplay handled like it would in real life, for the most part. The exception being chargeable power attacks that would do more damage as well as various skills that could make a player unrealistically fast, strong, or agile. The sensory felt almost real, although the sense of temperature and touch didn't quite feel the same; the game's creator, Kayaba Akihiko, had promised to make the game feel real, and that by the time of the game's release, all minor issues would be sorted out, and everything would feel, taste, smell, look, and sound as if it were real.

Kazuto burst through the front door of his home, ran up to his room, and started preparing for his first time entering the completed game. He calibrated the NerveGear, and laid down on his bed. The clock on the device struck 13:00.

Kazuto closed his eyes. "Link Start!"

He felt himself slowly losing feeling throughout his body until he completely blacked out. After hearing a few sound effects, he opened his eyes to see his body floating in an endless gray space, with the words, 'Welcome to Sword Art Online!' floating in front of him. He once again logged himself in with his former beta testing profile, which he had named 'Kirito'. In his profile, he deliberately made himself look older and taller than he actually was, along with somewhat longer hair. He had previously almost leveled up into the twenties, although Kayaba himself confirmed that a player's stats would be completely reset upon the game's release.

The world around him slowly shifted into the initial spawn point he remembered from the beta test; a large, open, citadel-like area. Only this time, it was filled with hundreds upon hundreds of new players.

Kazuto, now once again Kirito, breathed out a sigh of satisfaction he gained from looking down at his avatar. Blue shirt, leather chestplate, tan pants and boots. Everything seemed in place, feeling even the weight of the sword slung over his shoulder. Even though the beta test had unbelievable immersion, this time, it felt like he was _there._ Like Aincrad was a real place. Overwhelmed with happiness, he couldn't help but say to himself, "Good to be back." With a huge grin.

He couldn't help but just stand there and take it all in. The warmth of the sun, the fresh air, if he didn't know better, he'd say he was in the real world. But now was not the time for standing around. He had to start racking up as much EXP and equipment as possible to stay ahead of the new players. He remembered a nearby field that had a lot of boars, an easy animal to kill and farm for EXP. If he was lucky, he could make it there before anyone else. He took off running like a madman, still keeping his massive smile. He kept on taking in the scenery as he was moving. Hundreds of people lined up in shops, eager to spend their first credits. And, to his surprise, there was an unusually large number of female players. At least, for a video game. He figured it was still about a 2:1 ratio though. He cut through a back alley just as he heard someone else's footsteps following him.

"Hey, wait up!" He heard the person yell.

Kirito stopped in his tracks and turned to look at the player. Pink hair was the first thing he noticed. "Yeah?" Kirito finally responded.

The player stopped to catch his breath. "Hey, you look like a player who's done this before. Were you in the beta test?" Kirito seemed caught off guard that this person could deduce something like that so easily.

"Umm... yeah."

"Look, can you give any tips to a new player? My name's Klein."

Kirito quickly responded. "Sure. My name's Kirito."

**THIRTY MINUTES LATER**

The boar knocked Klein back right on his ass. Instinctively, he reached for his junk. "Dammit, not in the crotch..."

Kirito openly laughed at this. "Hey, idiot, you don't feel pain in here. And you can use your sword to block pretty easily you know. Plus, there's always just moving out of it's way."

"Shut up!" Klein said with an annoyed tone as Kirito picked up a pebble off the ground and prepared to throw it. "What good is a pebble going to do?" Klein said sarcastically.

"What are you talking about? Most OP weapon in the game right here!" Kirito replied with probably the most sarcasm he'd ever used in his life. Then, throwing as hard as he could, the pebble flew straight towards the boar and hit the animal at it's upper thigh. The boar turned to face him, preparing to charge. Kirito readied his sword. The boar charged, only to have Kirito swiftly block it's tusk with the edge of his sword. He gave it a push, then kicked the animal in it's side, turning it towards Klein. The boar once again charged, this time right at Klein. "Your turn!"

Klein lunged forwards, moving past the animal and slicing it down it's side. The boar fell to the ground, dead. "I think I got it." Klein said confidently. The notification appeared over the animal's corpse, stating the rewards received for killing it. "So... what happens to the corpse?"

"Give it a second..." Kirito replied. Surely enough, in a matter of seconds, the animal burst into tens of bright blue polygons, each one floating off into the air for a few seconds, then disappearing.

"That's so cool!" Klein said giddily. He closed the notification and sat down on the grass. "It just feels so real." Klein said as he readjusted his red headband. "Whoever made this is a genius."

"Yup. It took nearly ten years to completely finish this, I heard."

"Well, he's committed." Klein rubbed his stomach. "Hey, changing the subject here, but I'm feeling a little hungry."

"Yeah, the game even replicates the need for hunger, thirst and sleep."

"I imagine that could get a little annoying." Klein said as he picked himself up off the ground. "Anyways, I'll probably get going soon. I've got a pizza ordered for 5:30!" He opened up the menu and navigated to the settings, then to system.

"Hey, umm, Kirito? Noob question, but where's the logout button?"

Kirito looked at him like he was the dumbest person he'd ever met. "Are you serious? It's in Settings, then System."

"Well it's not there." Klein said with a tinge of worry in his voice. Kirito began to feel a tingling sensation throughout his avatar's body. "Hey, do you feel somethi-" Klein was cut off by both of their bodies disappearing in a flash of blue light. Once he could see again, Kirito found himself standing in the middle of a massive crowd of people, even more appearing by the second.

"A forced teleport?" Kirito said confused. Kirito's eyes widened as the sky itself began to turn red with the words, 'System Announcement'. _That can't be good..._

The spaces between the words began oozing a red liquid as he heard some people start to panic. Instead of flowing down to the ground, they stopped several meters short and began to form a large, red-cloaked figure. The figure lifted its arms.

"Greetings, everyone!" The crowd fell to an eerie silence.

"My name is Kayaba Akihiko. As many of you know, I am the creator of Sword Art Online!" The man paused for a moment. "Some of you may have noticed by now that the logout button has disappeared from the menu. Some of you may think this is merely a glitch in the server, but this is in no way an accident." Kirito clenched his fist. "I have a number of announcements to make, starting with the fact that you are effectively trapped in this world. There is no way to escape other than to clear all one-hundred-and-twenty floors of Sword Art Online."

"Beating an MMO?! Are you serious?!" Kirito heard someone exclaim from the some other corner of the mass.

"Indeed. Furthermore, the pain absorption will be now turned to zero, meaning you will feel every blow as if it were 100% real." _There was a pain absorption? And it could be turned off? _"All kinds of filters, including the ethics code, are also permanently turned off."

"Kayaba..." Kirito said under his breath.

"Any methods to revive a player in-game will also cease, which leads me to my next point. If you die in this game, your real body will perish." Those last words hit Kirito like a harpoon. "Blood will also begin to function normally. This was exceedingly difficult to program, but I personally feel it will help with immersion and that it was simply a nice addition." _What kind of sick, demented person is he?_

"I wish you all the best of luck, and may you lead your fellow players to victory!" At that, Kayaba's avatar began to disappear. "Oh, I almost forgot to mention, check your inventories for a pleasant surprise." Kirito quickly opened up his menu and rushed to the inventory section.

"A mirror..." Kirito equipped the item, holding it in front of him. He once again felt a tingling sensation as his and everyone else's body became engulfed in yet another flash of blue light. Once it had settled, Kirito was shocked to see his _real_ face in that mirror, with his body no longer tall and muscular like it had previously been. Everyone else's body seemed to look a little different save for Klein's, who only had his hair color change from hot pink to orange.

"Who are you?" Klein asked with a perplexed look on his face. Kirito didn't respond. Then it hit him. "You're Kirito!" Klein exclaimed.

"Yes, and I'm getting the hell out of here."

"Wha-What for?"

"I need to make it to the next town before anyone else. Can't afford to have everyone else take all the EXP on the way there."

"Oh, I see."

"Are you coming with me?" Kirito said, trying as hard as he could to seem in control.

"I... I can't. I have to look after my friends at this point. All I can say is good luck."

"Goodbye then." Kirito said as he spun around and broke into a full sprint. Within seconds he was outside the town, hopefully ahead of everyone else.

_I can do this..._ A boar stood in Kirito's way as he drew his sword. _I won't die in this world..._ He made the cut, nearly cleaving the animal in half, not once slowing down his sprint. "I... will... survive!"


	2. Chapter 2

Kirito struggled to give the impression he was calm. He'd practically just told everyone he had a death wish. Revealing he was a beta tester to not just a group of people who already disliked beta testers, but telling them that he was the person who made it the farthest; all the way to the 8th floor. The only one in the room who wasn't staring daggers at him was Asuna, but even she couldn't hide the look of shock on her face.

Of course, Kibaou was the first to speak his mind. "You... you piece of shit!" Kibaou ruthlessly charged at Kirito, only to have him swiftly sidestep the attack. Asuna quickly jumped between them.

"Hey, knock it off! Both of you!"

"Like hell I will, you dumb bitch!" Kibaou spat. "You're willing to defend him?!"

"You were willing to kill another person who hadn't attacked you?! In a situation like this?!" Asuna stood her ground.

"Person?! You mean piece of shit human being?! This asshole needs to pay!" Kibaou raised his fist and swung as hard as he could, feeling satisfied as Asuna nearly fell to the ground, her hand on her cheek.

Kibaou had no time to react to what happened next. In no time at all, Kirito lunged at him, not striking, but putting his blade right on Kibaou's throat. "If you touch her again... I'll cut your head clean off." Kibaou remained silent. Kirito backed away and sheathed his sword. "Are you alright?" He placed his hand on Asuna's shoulder. It was already starting to bruise, and a small stream of blood ran from her lower lip to her chin.

"I'll be fine." She said, although she was nowhere near as confident as she was moments ago. Kirito didn't respond, he simply turned and started for the steps to the second floor. There was no way he was ever going to be able to live normally in this world again. "Wait!" Asuna grabbed his arm. "You're leaving? Just like that?"

"Yes. And there's no way you're staying with me." He wanted so badly to let her. She was about as good at the game as he was, she was his age... and she was kind of cute. "Once word gets around, then everyone in the game will want me dead. I can't let you risk yourself like that."

"I can defend myself!" She was trying so hard to hold back tears. He was the only friend she'd had in this world. "If something happened to you, then I'd feel responsible for not being there to help you!"

Kirito snapped. "I'm not letting you get hurt because of me! Don't make this harder than it needs to be!"

Asuna stepped back. "Fine." She felt tears forming in her eyes as Kirito walked away.

**TWENTY MINUTES LATER**

Kirito looked around at the forests of the second floor. The midnight sky was illuminated by thousands of brilliant stars. On the other hand, he was loving his new armor. The 'Cloak of Midnight', as it was called, a dark blue, almost purple trench coat nearly covering a yellow chestplate with a small crescent moon at the collar. Now if he just had a sword to go along with it...

Kirito's thoughts were interrupted by Kibaou walking out from the bushes in front of him. Only he wasn't the only one. At least seven more players joined in, quickly surrounding Kirito as he refused to draw his sword.

"I'm not going to kill another player. Even one as stupid as you."

Kibaou sneered. "Then that'll make our jobs a lot easier."

"But that doesn't mean I won't hurt you." Kirito drew his sword. "Look at this." Kirito opened up his menu to his player statistics. Level 28. "You are all sorely outleveled. If you drop this nonsense now, then no one has to lose a limb."

They all stared at Kirito, in awe and in fear.

"Leave him alone!" Kirito heard a familiar voice shout. He was both happy and angry about who it was. But this could be his opportunity to get these idiots away from him.

"Look. We both outlevel you. You aren't going to accomplish anything by attacking me."

Kibaou was gritting his teeth and clenching his fist. "Fine. But this is far from over." He sheathed his sword and walked back down the path to the first floor. Asuna ran over to him.

"I told you not to follow me."

"I know... but... you're the only friend I have here. I don't have anywhere else to go. That's why I want to come with you so badly."

Kirito felt like he'd just been hit with a harpoon. He could let her, but if he did, she was arguably less safe then going off and being a solo player. But could he really tell her no after that? "Okay. But I won't be able to live with myself if you get hurt."

Her face lit up. "I won't."

"Then we'd better get going. I'm not sure we'll be able to make it to the next town tonight."

"Well, don't you think we kind of have to?"

"We could always camp out under a tree or something..." Kirito chuckled, but he was only half joking. He had done that before, and it was actually quite nice. Especially since the weather was starting to cool down.

Kirito couldn't help but notice how closely she was walking to him. She was practically touching him as they walked. "Hey, this game has rain, right?"

"Umm... yeah. Why?" She pointed to the clouds. A rather large storm cloud seemed to be moving closer. Lightning flashed off in the distance. "Well, if it rains it rains. There's not much we can do about it."

"I know, but doesn't it mean we need to make it to the town tonight?"

"We'll be fine if we don't. Our outfits might just get a little wet."

Asuna changed the subject. "Hey, Kirito..."

"Yeah?"

"You've heard about that guild of murderers right? Laughing Coffin?" She looked a little scared.

Kirito nodded. "They're a small guild as of now. Only about forty players."

"They're growing quickly though. Ten of those are from the last couple of weeks. I heard they accept bounties..."

"Where's this going?"

"I'm just getting a feeling that Kibaou, or someone in his group, may hire Laughing Coffin to get you."

"They won't. They know I'm a high-level player."

"That's true, but still... what if they use a paralysis poison or something?" She still maintained her concerned look.

"They wouldn't be able to touch me. I've leveled up my agility the most. Then strength, so I'll be able to take them down easily." Kirito placed his hand on her shoulder. "Quit worrying about me. You're the one I'm scared for."

"Okay." She said, shaking his hand off.

"How's that bruise?"

"I'm fine." She turned to face him. "But my feet are starting to ache a little. You think we can stop somewhere nearby for tonight?"

"Just find a tree you like." She pointed to a small hill just above the treeline. The hill had a single, massive tree at the top of it, and there were no other trees within several meters of it. Kirito walked the distance to it, then took off the scabbard strapped to his back. Asuna took the sheath for her rapier off her belt and unequipped her boots. They both sat down, Kirito using a root sticking up from the ground as a headrest, using his hands to cushion his head from the hard surface. Asuna laid down on the grass a few feet away.

"Good night, Kirito."

"Good night, Asuna.


	3. Chapter 3

Kirito opened his eyes. The first thing he noticed were that his clothes were soaking wet, and then he remembered the storm Asuna pointed out the night before. Speaking of her, she was still fast asleep on the grass next to him. Kirito nudged her arm. "Hey, wake up. We still have a lot of walking to do."

She lifted her head off the ground; a blade of wet grass sticking to her cheek. "What?" She said half asleep.

"Get up, we're not even halfway to the town yet."

She stood up, rubbed her eyes, and equipped her boots. Kirito slung the scabbard for his sword over his shoulder, and the two continued their walk. They walked for nearly thirty minutes before Asuna finally started a conversation. "So, what are you going to do once we get there?"

"I'm getting something to eat. I'm about to start taking damage from this." Kirito had a love/hate relationship with hunger in the game. It was certainly realistic, in the sense that if it was depleted your character's health bar would start to go down, but it was also very annoying.

Asuna broke into a wide smile. "I could make something! My cooking skill is really high."

Kirito grinned. She was cute, had a nice personality, was great in combat, and could cook? "...But you wouldn't have anywhere to cook unless we bought a house. And even with the huge amount of money I got from killing the boss, I'm still several thousand short for that."

Asuna frowned. "Oh."

An idea hit Kirito. "Hey, how's your sword doing?"

"I don't know, I haven't checked since before the boss fight." She opened her menu and navigated to the equipment section. "It's only at one-third durability."

"I could give you some of that money so you can buy a new sword."

"What? No! I couldn't ask you to do that. I'm perfectly fine."

"It's okay. I'll still have plenty left over for me. I'll just half it." Before she could protest, Kirito opened up his menu and shared half of his 7,000 credits with her. Asuna received the notification that a new item had been added to her inventory.

She sighed, knowing that arguing with him further was pointless. "Fine. Thanks for the money."

"You're welcome."

* * *

"So, how do you think the players will react to seeing you? You being public enemy number one at the moment." Asuna said.

Kirito hadn't even thought of that. "Crap. I guess I'll have to change into my old armor when we get there."

"Smart. Even then though, there's no guarantee. If they do recognize you, how bad do you think it will get?"

"If I were being optimistic, then they would probably shout insults at me and throw rocks. Maybe swo-" Kirito stopped himself as he saw three, no, four people in the distance, approaching them. Instinctively, Kirito grabbed Asuna's arm and ran for the trees. He found one about a meter in thickness, and then crouched behind it.

"What are you doing?" Asuna whispered.

"They could be bounty hunters. It's a small group, and they're heading away from the town." Asuna nodded as the players came into view. They were all in black cloaks, and each of them had an assortment of knives, plus a longsword at their hip. He noticed they all had the same emblem on their shoulders, a demented smile painted onto a wooden coffin with an arm coming out of its side. Laughing Coffin.

Kirito tried to listen in on their conversation. "We should head back. There's no way the stupid kid could be this far back." He heard one of the players say.

"ZaZa's right. No one's back here."

The player in front of them sighed. "Fine, we'll head back to HQ. Pussies." They continued to walk towards the first floor. Finally, they were out of sight.

"Watch out for anyone dressed in black." Kirito whispered to Asuna as he stood up and got back on the path. Asuna nodded, and took her place at his side. "Anyways, in case there are some of them in the bushes on our way..." Kirito opened his menu and equipped his old armor.

**THIRTY MINUTES LATER**

The town was finally coming into view. Kirito checked the time. 12:30 p.m. They had been walking for two and a half hours. "Alright, I'll meet you..." Kirito looked around for an easy spot to find. "...there." He pointed towards a three-story inn.

"Alright. Meet you there!" Asuna took off running, straight for a weapons shop. Kirito, on the other hand, ran for the nearest restaurant. Fortunately, there was one right near the entrance. Kirito burst through the door, everyone in the room looking at him like he was crazy. Fortunately though, none of them got up and drew their sword. He pushed his way right to the front. Frantically, he opened up the 'For Sale' icon floating above the counter. Without a second thought, he bought a rack of boar ribs, a basked of bread, and two slices of pie.

He turned around and tried to make his way back through the line of people, every single one of them giving him a dirty look. He sat down on a bench right outside the restaurant. With every bystander giving him a disgusted look, he wolfed down all of the ribs, three of the five pieces of bread, and one slice of pie. With each bite, Kirito couldn't help but thinking of how great it tasted; how it tasted like something he would never get to have in real life. With his hunger meter fully restored, he started for the weapons shop.

Once he got there, he could already tell he was going to walk away satisfied. A girl his age, and bubblegum pink hair with a red and white blacksmith's apron was standing in the store, a huge smile on her face. The girl was surrounded by rows upon rows of weaponry.

"Hello! My name's Lisbeth, how can I help you?" Her cheery attitude almost caught him off guard. She wasn't an NPC; the green marker normally above a visible player's head was clearly there.

"I was wondering what I could get for this sword." He took the sword out of his scabbard and handed it to her. The weight of the weapon almost seemed to throw her off balance.

"It's a stock weapon, and at three-fourths durability."

"So... what's it worth?"

"I'd say... about 200 max."

"Alright. Good enough for me." With a few flicks of his finger and the press of a button, the sword disappeared from his inventory, 200 credits were added, and the scabbard for the weapon disappeared from his back.

"Anything else for you?"

"What's the best one-handed sword you have?" She looked at him like he was insane.

"Well... I do have this one sword, but I don't think you can afford it. Besides, your strength stat may not be high enough."

"Well, what is it?" Kirito persisted.

"This." She pressed a button on her menu, and a large longsword sheathed in a black scabbard materialized in her hands. She handed the weapon to Kirito.

"Anneal Blade..." Kirito read the name of the item as he looked at the weapon under the scabbard. The hilt was completely black, and the guard was just enough to look cool, but not necessarily flashy. He put the tip of the weapon on the floor and held the hilt to his chest. The sword was far too long to draw from the back.

"It costs 3,550. It was a field boss drop from the last floor, and it's good as new; no one I know has the strength stat to wield that thing." Kirito looked at the weapon. Required Strength: Lvl 40. Kirito checked his stats. Strength Lvl: 42. He was just strong enough.

"I'll take it." Lisbeth's jaw dropped. He opened up his menu, and bought the weapon. 3,550 credits disappeared from his inventory. Lisbeth still had a shocked look on her face. "Thanks for the help!" Kirito said as he walked out the door, fastening the weapon to his belt.

Kirito could already see Asuna waiting outside the inn. She was admiring a shiny new rapier in her hand. "What'd you get?" Asuna jumped, surprised to see him.

"I got a new rapier. It cost me just about all of my money though."

"What's it called?"

"It's called the 'Wind Fleuret'. What'd you get?"

"This." He drew the sword from his side, an action that would take some getting used to. He held up the blade in the sunlight, Asuna gawking at it. "It's called the 'Anneal Blade'. This thing cost me all of my money, and I'm just barely strong enough to use it." Kirito backed away, preparing to swing the weapon for the first time.

In a single swift motion, he raised the blade above his head and swung downward, powerful enough to cleave a boar in half. Kirito turned his wrist slightly, putting himself in the perfect position for a second strike. He swung the weapon horizontally, the weight of the weapon giving him a harder time than he thought to stop the momentum. He swung again, this time upwards, and finally brought the blade down as hard as he could, the edge of the weapon tapping against the ground; causing the 'Immortal Object' notification to appear in front of him.

"Where'd you learn that one?"

"Just a little combo I came up with a couple weeks ago." Kirito said, grinning.

"Could you teach me?" Asuna sounded so eager.

"Sure. But it won't be much with a rapier. Those are mainly stabbing weapons."

"I kno-" Asuna stopped herself upon hearing the crowd of people around them fall silent. The people steadily began to back away from Kirito and Asuna, who were both looking quite concerned.

A man... in a black cloak... was slowly approaching them. The man spoke with a deep, almost malevolent voice as he drew a sword, covered in spikes and serrations.

"Kirito... you're time has come."


	4. Chapter 4

Kirito equipped his Cloak of Midnight. At this point, it didn't matter. He turned to Asuna. "Get back." He said as he faced the Laughing Coffin member. "I don't want to kill you."

"Then I, Chronos, member of the famed guild Laughing Coffin, will kill you. You have no idea of the power this world yields to those who accept its rules. Kill or be killed." The man's face broke into a wicked grin. "In addition, many players are offering a large bounty for your head."

Kirito readied himself. "You'll never get the chance."

The player attacked much faster than Kirito was expecting. He managed to sidestep the attack, although he figured the player had a high agility stat. Kirito swung the blade downward, but his opponent reacted fast enough to parry the strike, leaving him open. Chronos swiftly kicked Kirito in the stomach, knocking him back. Asuna almost jumped in, but Kirito shot her a look to stay back. The player stabbed at Kirito, barely parrying the strike and giving him a small cut on his arm.

However, instead of fighting back, Kirito felt his arm go limp. Then his entire body fell to the ground. A green timer appeared below his health bar that started counting down from one minute. One minute of paralysis. The Laughing Coffin member turned to the crowd of people. "Is this not what you people want?! The infamous Black Swordsman being punished for his crimes!" No one in the crowd made a sound.

Kirito's opponent stood over him, his sword raised. He brought the blade down, piercing Kirito's chest. He screamed from the pain as his health bar was almost halved. The man removed the sword from Kirito's torso, only to bring it down once again. Kirito desperately tried to overcome the poison, and caught the blade with his hands. He winced at the pain as he struggled to move the sword to where it wouldn't hit him. It was of little use, however, as Chronos pushed harder downward, causing the blade to cut deeper into Kirito's hands and slice open his side. His health bar took another major hit. He was down to one-fourth of his health, bleeding damage causing it to slowly deplete further.

Chronos laughed maniacally. "Farewell!" He said with glee. That second though, Kirito heard footsteps as Chronos glanced behind him, then tried to dive out of the way as a rapier was stabbed through his side. The player grunted in pain as he swung, but his weapon was parried out of his hand.

"Asuna..." Kirito muttered. His health bar was down to one-fifth, still ever so slowly depleting. Twenty seconds left on his paralysis. Asuna swiftly kicked the man in his jaw. He spat out blood as he fell to his knees.

"Stop... please." Chronos softly spoke to her. "I... I was wrong for attacking him. Please, spare me."

_Don't you do it!_ Kirito thought. He wanted to speak up, but he was in far too much pain. Using what little strength he had left, he tilted his head to see Asuna standing over him, ready to kill. Except Kirito could visibly see her letting her guard down. The tension she had a moment before was gone.

In a single, swift motion, the man jumped up as he pulled a dagger from his belt and stabbed Asuna in the stomach. Her hands let go of her rapier as she fell to the ground, paralyzed. Of course the poison was applied to all of his weapons. Kirito saw her health bar fall by two-thirds. It hit her perfectly in the center of her abdomen. Ten seconds.

Chronos retrieved his sword and stood over Asuna, poised to strike. "Dumb bitch." Chronos muttered as he raised the blade above his head. One second.

Kirito grabbed his sword and in the blink of an eye, rushed towards Chronos, stabbing him at the base of his throat. The man fell to the ground, his head landing on Kirito's feet. Within a matter of seconds, the man's body burst into hundreds of tiny blue polygons.

Kirito knelt down next to Asuna, the knife still in her stomach. Kirito took hold of her hand. "This is going to hurt, okay?" He placed his hand on the knife. "One...two...three!" He pulled with what little strength he had left. Asuna yelped as she squeezed his hand as hard as she could. With a gruesome sound, he successfully pulled out the knife and tossed it to the side.

Kirito checked his inventory. He had one healing potion left. With the tap of a button, the small red bottle materialized in his hand. He held the opening to her lips. "Drink this." He softly whispered to her. She swallowed a few times, and Kirito saw her health bar restore completely. The paralysis was still in effect for another thirty seconds, however. Kirito looked at his own health bar, only to be reminded of the unholy pain coming from his chest and stomach. His health bar was down to one-sixth. At one-eighth or lower, a player would black out.

A man in a green shopkeeper outfit stepped forwards. "Take this." He said gently as he held out a healing potion.

Kirito reached for it. "Thank you." He took the bottle and drank every last drop of it. His wounds disappeared and his health became completely restored. As he tossed away the bottle, he noticed everyone around him, at least forty people, all looking at him. Kirito sighed. "I guess the rest of you are going to start calling me a horrible person. First for all the things I said after the boss fight, and now I've killed another player."

"No." He heard several of the people say. One of them stepped forward. A man with a battleaxe on his back, and a steel chestplate covering his torso.

"After something like that? Absolutely not. Both of you have a level of courage most of us here couldn't hope to have." He held out his hand to Kirito offering him help up. Kirito shook his head no, and instead picked Asuna up off the ground. Without saying a word, he walked slowly over to the inn as the crowd began to disperse. He approached the man at the front desk.

"One room. Two beds."

The man held out a key to him. "Upstairs, room twenty seven. No charge."

"Thank you." Kirito replied. He took the key, Asuna still in his arms, and walked up the stairs.

* * *

Asuna had her eyes closed, her head resting on his shoulder and cheek. Kirito opened up the door to the room, and laid Asuna down on one the beds. She sat up, tears starting to fill her eyes. "I... I'm sorry..." Kirito was surprised at her sudden display of emotion. "...I... I should have just stayed behind. I shouldn't have tried to come with you..." A tear fell from her cheek. "I... I almost got both of us killed." She couldn't bring herself to look at him. "I should... just... stay away from you."

Kirito placed his hand on his shoulder, using the other to lift her chin up. "Asuna, I owe you my life." She looked at him, her face now stained with tears. "I wouldn't be here right now if not for you." He moved his face closer to hers. "I know we still don't even know each other that well, but... I hope you could stay with me. If you don't mind, I'd just like to watch over you for a little while." He wrapped his arms around her as she did the same. "I'll see to it that you get to live with your family again. I will use my life to protect yours, no matter the cost." He released.

Asuna smiled. "I'll do the same for you."

Kirito held his fist out in front of him. "Partners?"

She bumped his fist. "Partners."


	5. Chapter 5

Kirito sliced through the last boar. After a long sigh, he sat down on the grass and opened his menu. He'd just reached level 37, and at 4:02 in the morning. He hadn't been able to sleep for the past week since him and Asuna had almost been publicly murdered. Even though he prided himself on his generally high level, he was still inescapably vulnerable. He couldn't rest until he was entirely capable of defending her, even though she had been working almost harder than he had during the day to become as strong as she could in order to protect him.

Either way, even if he could sleep, his rest wouldn't last. Nearly every time he had been either awoken by his own nightmares or Asuna's. Remembering the image of her, laying down on the stone ground, her health bar dangerously low, paralyzed, the knife in her stomach, and the look in her eyes. Her beautiful eyes, wet with tears and pupils shrunken. It looked like she was, simply put, dying. He doubted he could ever forget that.

He lifted himself off the ground and walked alone back to the town. In addition to his nightmares, he had to also face the psychological result of killing a living, breathing, feeling person. Sure, he would have likely gone on to kill even more people if Kirito hadn't stopped him, but somewhere, there was a family that cared about him. That, was what disturbed him. That he'd taken away the hope of an entire family who just wanted to see their loved one return. Just thinking about it made him want to vomit.

He returned to his room at the inn; the keeper had been kind enough to let him stay as long as he wished. Asuna was there, fast asleep. They had feelings for each other, but both of them were too scared to act on them. Ironically, they both knew this, and were just waiting for the other to admit it.

Kirito unequipped his boots and prepared to lay down on the bed. Just as he removed his coat though, Asuna woke up screaming. Kirito rushed to her side. "It's okay, it's okay. Just a bad dream."

"I... I know." She said as she hugged him tightly. She noticed a small tear in the fabric of his shirt that Kirito had received from a boar earlier that night. "You were out grinding?"

"Yeah."

"I'm telling you, you need to stop going out in the middle of the night and doing this. It's just plain reckless." She released him from her arms.

"Asuna... I just want to be there to protect you." She grabbed his hand.

"You feel this?" Kirito nodded his head. "Nothing's going to happen. I'm staying right here with you." She let go of his hand. "Now get some sleep."

"Gladly." Kirito said as he hopped into his bed and closed his eyes. For once, his rest wasn't interrupted by nightmares.

* * *

Kirito awoke to see Asuna, already up, and getting her equipment ready. "Heading out?" He said half asleep.

"Just heading over to the restaurant for some breakfast."

"Meet me out in the fields." Kirito said as he got out of his bed. Asuna left the room and started walking her way over to the restaurant. He equipped his boots, grabbed his sword and headed down the stairs. A man in long white and red robes was sitting down, seemingly waiting for him.

"Hello, Kirito." The man stood up. "I speak on behalf of the Knights of the Blood Oath, and we would like you to become a member of our guild."

"...And what exactly does a floor-clearing guild like the KoB want with me?"

"You seem to display a fair amount of skill in this game, and since you were not only a beta tester, but one who made it all the way to the eighth floor, we feel that you would be a valuable asset in our guild." Kirito couldn't deny that what he knew could be of use to the guilds. But given the general opinion towards beta testers, he'd decided that it would be best just to not bother.

"I'd like to remain independent as of now. I will consider your offer, and send you a message once I've decided."

The man nodded. "I understand. I will inform Heathcliff of your decision."

"I'm more than willing to give you information, though. I know possible locations for the bosses up to the eighth floor. Open your map." The man flicked his finger through the menu and a map of the second floor appeared in front of him. Kirito pointed at a small cluster of mountains. A green marker appeared over the location. "Here. That may be where the second floor boss is."

"Your help is much appreciated." The man said as he closed his map and exited the inn.

So now the KoB wanted him. It bewildered Kirito that one small event could cause such a drastic change on the people's opinion of him. Of course, the bounties were still there though. Kirito left the inn and headed for the fields he was in a few short hours ago. Asuna was there, sitting down in the grass, finishing off a piece of bread. Kirito sat down next to her.

"So, what do you want to do today?" She asked cheerfully.

"Well... did you see that man in the white robes on your way out?"

"Yeah. What about him?"

Kirito sighed. "He said he was with the KoB, and that they wanted me to join." Asuna wasn't trying too hard to hide her surprised expression.

"The KoB? You mean the floor-clearing guild? What do they want with you? I thought most people hated you."

"That's what I thought. Apparently, they say I'm really skilled and that someone with the knowledge of a beta tester could be of use."

"...Are you considering joining? You kept on telling me you wanted to stay a solo player."

"I may. Being in a big guild like that could be the protection we need. If you're okay with joining, that is." Asuna didn't respond. "Well, are you?" He could tell she was trying to think this through.

"I'm okay with it. Only if you are."

"I am." Kirito responded. Asuna noticed he hadn't yet made eye contact with her.

"So it's settled, then? We're joining the KoB?"

"I guess so. I'll send them a message later today and visit them tomorrow." Kirito looked at her. "I think we should just rest today. We've been going at it every day for the past week." Asuna nodded as Kirito stood up. He offered her help up. "I feel like catching up on sleep anyway."

"Do we really have to walk all the way back to the town, though?" This was the first time he'd ever heard Asuna complain about anything.

Kirito took off the Anneal Blade from his hip and laid down under the shade of a nearby tree. "Have it your way then." Kirito closed his eyes as Asuna got down beside him, letting out a little 'Hmph' as she lie down beside him. Still at a comfortable distance, however.

She realized Kirito was already fast asleep. Within minutes, she was asleep, herself.

* * *

Kirito rubbed his eyes and sat up. He jumped a little bit when he saw Asuna laying right next to him. _Man, it's like she's trying as hard as she can. _He wasn't complaining, though. She was... well... cute. Especially her long, chestnut brown hair that looked reddish-blonde in the sunlight. Speaking of the sunlight, there wasn't much of it left in the day. The sun was a deep orange, starting to descend below the horizon. Judging from the sun's position in the sky, Kirito guessed they had been sleeping for about eight or so hours.

Asuna moved slightly. She was waking up. Kirito looked out on the horizon as she sat up next to him. He couldn't help but thinking this would be the perfect place to tell Asuna his feelings. She leaned on his shoulder. "Hey... Kirito?" Her voice was almost a whisper.

"Hm?" He turned to face her.

"I know that we've only known each other for a couple of weeks, but..." He could already tell where this was going. "...I like you. A lot." She moved her face closer to his. Kirito gently kissed her on the cheek. She lightly gasped.

He wasn't quite sure how to respond. He was never good with words. "I like you too." It was cheesy, but it was all he could come up with. She put her arm over his shoulder. Kirito wasn't quite expecting what followed. She kissed him, full on the lips. He could have broken away, and told her to slow way down, which would have probably been the appropriate thing to do, but he simply couldn't. All he could do was accept the kiss, wrapping his arms around her and holding her tightly.

The two of them released. After a few seconds of absorbing what had just happened, Kirito finally spoke up. "So, what do you want to do now? We got in our day of rest."

Asuna stood up. "How's dinner sound?"

"Great. I'm starving." Kirito said as he stood up and fastened the sword back to his belt. "I'll pay."

"No, you gave me the money for the new sword. I'm paying this time." She said back playfully.

"Uh, no. I'm the guy here, I'm supposed to be the one paying." He said as the two of them held hands.

Asuna sighed. "There's no arguing with you, is there? Fine."

And at that, the two of them started walking back towards the town.


	6. Chapter 6

"You know, you really should let me cook something for you every once in a while. I'm telling you, my cooking skill is pretty high." Asuna said as she ate the last bite of her food. Kirito had been done with his for a few minutes.

"Well, I would, but we kind of need house for that." The way player homes worked was one of his only problems with the game. You had to either own a shop or a house in order to cook something for yourself.

"Yeah, I know." She said as she stood up from the table. "Lets get going. Don't you still have to send the KoB your message?"

"Yeah, but I'm just still not that sure about joining." Kirito got up and followed her out the door.

"Why is that?"

"It just takes the fun away from being a solo player. I like not having to answer to a guild leader; to not being forced to go fight on the front lines with everyone else. There's less freedom."

"Well... that's true. But don't you think it would help if we had the assurance of being in a guild? Sure you're forced to help the other players even if you don't want to, but they'll help you also when you need it. With Laughing Coffin after us, we're a lot less likely to get caught by them that way."

Kirito sighed. "I guess you're right." He opened his menu. _I think it's Heathcliff who accepts messages to the guild... _He thought to himself. Kirito started typing the message as they arrived back at the inn.

'This is Kirito. I've been thinking about joining the KoB, and I've decided to do so. I'm willing to offer any information needed, and I hope to be of use to the guild. I plan to arrive at the guild headquarters tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. for registration.' He showed the message to Asuna. "How's this sound?"

She read over the message. "Looks good to me." Kirito nodded and hit the 'Send' button as Asuna closed the door to their room behind them. "How long is the walk tomorrow?"

"Shouldn't be much. Their HQ just relocated to the edge of town." Kirito said as he jumped into his bed.

"Alright. Good night, Kirito."

"Good night, Asuna."

* * *

The two approached the KoB guild headquarters. It was a fairly large building, about four stories tall, and red banners with the KoB emblem hanging on the building's exterior. Two guards stood by as Kirito and Asuna entered. The interior was arguably more impressive than the outside. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling, and a massive red carpet covered a majority of the stone brick floor, and two long tables made for about ten people were on either side. At the opposite end were a few small steps leading up to a throne of sorts, a man in completely red armor sitting in it. Kirito could only guess that it was Heathcliff. A man in white robes approached him.

"Kirito?"

"Yes sir."

"Ah, good! Heathcliff would likely want to speak with you personally." He led them to the man on the throne, who was the first to speak.

"You must be Kirito." Kirito nodded. "Well, I'm certainly glad you made the decision to join us. Thanks to your information, we have located the second floor boss, and are preparing to launch an attack on it."

"So... what now?"

"Think of this as an initiation. We have heard of your skills, but we would like to view them firsthand. If we succeed, and you prove to be the skilled player we were told of, then you will be allowed to join." Why did he need an initiation? Wasn't his knowledge of the game alone more than enough?

"Wait... what about Asuna?" He gestured at her. "She can join if she wants too, right? I mean, she's about as good at the game as I am."

"I'm... afraid that may be harder to come by. We would like to keep the size of the guild small, to maintain our status as one of the top guilds. No more than thirty-five players, and you're the thirty-fifth. Many players have come to join us since the first floor was cleared, after all..."

Kirito probably sounded a little angrier than he thought. "Absolutely not! If she can't join, then I won't join, and you need my information about the bosses."

Heathcliff didn't seem the least bit startled. "Calm down, Kirito. I was going to say that I'll see what I can do. The fact remains, however, that Asuna simply may not be able to join."

"...And if she can't, then I'm not joining." He was adamant about this.

"Very well." He paused for a moment. "On the other hand, I'd suggest you go and prepare yourself; we leave for the boss in two hours."

Kirito nodded, and left the building with Asuna. "You didn't have to yell at him like that."

"I don't care how I sounded. How can I be there for you if I'm in a guild all the time?"

"You're saying that like I'm some defenseless little girl." She shifted her glance away from him. "I can handle myself, you know."

Kirito sighed. "Sorry. I just couldn't stand to see you hurt again..." He took hold of her hand. "I'm sorry if I'm a little overprotective sometimes."

She held his hand tightly. "It's okay. If you got hurt... I doubt I could stand it either." The two smiled at each other.

Asuna was always the one to change the subject. "Anyways, want to go get lunch? I'm pretty hungry."

"Yeah, me too." They had skipped out on breakfast, after all.

**2 HOURS LATER**

"Saddle up!" Heathcliff exclaimed to the KoB rallying behind him, Kirito and Asuna included. The two of them got onto their horses. "On horseback, we should arrive within fifteen minutes! If you haven't already, switch to your best available gear!" Kirito already had his Cloak of Midnight equipped and the Anneal Blade strapped to his belt. "Information gathered on the boss indicates that it resembles that of a Minotaur. It charges at it's prey, using it's horns as weapons." It sounded exactly as Kirito remembered it. "It is very fast and agile, although it's health is confirmed to be lower than that of the first floor boss. In addition, the monster is estimated to be three meters tall." Heathcliff turned his horse to face the mountains ahead. "Move out!"

All of the KoB members' horses reared up, and immediately broke into a gallop. Kirito couldn't help but smile; it felt like he was part of an old-fashioned fantasy tale. Asuna's horse steadied itself next to his. Barely able to speak over the sound of tens of hooves slamming against the ground, Asuna said, "Is it bad that I didn't know horses were in this game until today?"

Kirito gave looked at her as if to say, 'Really?!'. "Only if you've been in the game for almost two months. Oh wait..."

"You don't need to be a prick about it, Mr. Beta Tester." Asuna replied sarcastically.

"Well what's that supposed to mean?" Kirito sounded annoyed.

With a smug grin, Asuna replied, "Take that any way you like."

Kirito simply gave her another annoyed look and focused on the road ahead. The cave where the boss supposedly resided was coming into view. It looked like an unnatural hole that was artificially dug into the mountain. "You ready?" Kirito shouted at Asuna.

"Absolutely!" She exclaimed confidently.

Heathcliff led the guild up to the entrance of the cave. Along with Heathcliff, the members of the KoB dismounted their horses. Walking up to the entrance, he turned to face the guild behind him. "I wish the best of luck to all of you, and if it is your time, then may you die with a sword in your hand!" The guild roared in approval.

Kirito turned to face Asuna. "You have to admit, he knows how to give a speech."

Asuna nodded. "It's almost like he spends all that time on the throne rehearsing."

The two turned back to Heathcliff, shield now equipped, and sword in hand. He raised his weapon far above his head, the blade glinting in the sunlight. With a downward motion, the guild charged in, ready for battle.


	7. Chapter 7

Surprisingly, two other guilds were waiting inside the cave, surrounding a massive steel door. The Aincrad Liberation Force, led by none other than Kibaou, and another guild he wasn't familiar with. They looked certainly capable, even though it looked to be only six players, all wearing red and black. One, in particular, looked quite familiar. He didn't have time to see who it was however, because Kibaou was beginning to approach him.

"What the hell are you doing here?" The player said coldly. "I hope that boss tears you in half and crushes your little head."

Kirito rolled his eyes. "Are you serious? You're not giving up on this, are you?"

"You need to pay. After what all you've gotten away with, you deserve to die."

Kirito sighed. "Can you quit being a self-righteous dumbass long enough for us to get through this? Just for a few minutes, maybe?"

Kibaou grabbed him by the collar and lifted him off the ground. "The fuck did you just say?!" Spit pelted Kirito's face as Kibaou yelled furiously at him. He lifted his right fist and swung viciously at Kirito, expecting the blow to connect. He had no such luck however, as Kirito easily blocked the strike with his left forearm and kicked him in the chest, causing him to drop Kirito and be knocked back.

Kirito gave him an annoyed look. "Stop. We can fight all you want after this is over, but for now, we have a boss to defeat."

Kibaou backed away. "Fine." The player returned to his guild as he heard someone else approaching him.

"Kirito?" He heard a familiar voice say. He turned to see Klein, hair still pink, outfitted with a long katana at his hip, and a black chestplate partially covering a crimson shirt.

"Klein! It's been a while, have you joined a guild?"

Klein got a rather proud look on his face as he replied, "Believe it or not, I'm the leader of my own guild. Just me and my friends, all above level twenty." Klein was about to continue but was stopped by the creaking of the steel door opening. The guilds began to pour inside.

Kirito noticed the ox-like creature at the opposite end of the massive area. It stood upright, almost three meters,although the only thing remotely humanoid about it was it's torso, but even that still closely resembled that of a large ox. It had long, curved horns protruding from its forehead, and looked long enough to completely impale a person. The creature got down on all of its limbs, and continued to stare straight ahead with glowing red eyes. A large number of smaller creatures began to spawn, some humanoid and carrying a weapon, others looking like simply smaller versions of what appeared to be the boss.

"Ready?" The booming voice of Heathcliff called out from the front of the crowd. "Wait for its first attack!" Almost on cue, the ox charged forward as the crowd began to disperse, clearing a path for the animal to go through. It shifted its path at the last second however, and plowed through a small group of players close to the inside of the path. At least two players were dead.

The small army spread out more, battling the smaller mobs as a group of players focused their attacks on the boss, although nothing seemed to be rather effective. Asuna was still by Kirito's side. "Split up! You help get rid of the smaller mobs, I'll fight the boss!" Asuna nodded and rushed a small cluster of mobs with alarming speed, killing them quickly with a few strikes of her rapier, then went to assist a group getting swarmed as Kirito fought his way towards the boss.

Heathcliff, Kibaou, and a small number of other players were there, collectively attacking the boss. Heathcliff seemed to be faring the best out of all of them, having not lost a sliver of HP, and blocking all of the monster's attacks with ease. Kibaou, however, was not as fortunate. The boss jolted its head to the left, catching the player off guard and impaling him in the stomach. The boss tossed Kibaou off his horns like he was a small animal, and began to lift its front legs off the ground, rearing up like a horse. Kirito remembered this attack from the beta. Apparently, either Heathcliff was lucky enough to predict what was happening, or he knew the boss' attack pattern, as he swiftly jumped back.

"Get back!" Kirito tried warn the players, but it was already too late. The boss brought down its front legs, striking the ground beneath it with unbelievable force. A shockwave erupted around it, sending the remaining players flying backwards, each losing a sizable amount of their HP. "Damn it..." Kirito said to himself as he rushed for the boss, who took notice of Kirito and began to charge at him.

Kirito put his sword in front of him to block the attack, the impact jarring his hands as the boss refused to relent, continuing to push forward with all its might. Kirito had to put his other hand on the end of the blade to make sure it wouldn't overpower him. The boss finally backed up, only to prepare to charge again. Kirito was prepared this time however, as he rolled out of the way, making a long, deep cut along the boss' side. This only seemed to anger it, and before he could react, the ox turned itself around and charged again, this time knowing it could land its attack, and it was right.

The animal's horn stabbed into Kirito at the upper part of his stomach, continuing to charge until Kirito felt his back slam against a wall, pushing the horn deeper into his body. Kirito screamed as the animal continued to push deeper and deeper. Kirito glanced at his health bar. One fifth remained. Knowing he had only seconds left, Kirito lifted his blade using what little strength he had left, and swung downward. The blade cleaved the boss' head off. Kirito fell to the ground, almost unconscious. He swiped his finger downward to open the menu, and after a few more button presses, a small red bottle materialized in his hand. A healing potion. He quickly took the lid off of it and drank, watching his health bar refill more with each swallow. The pain subsided, and Asuna came running towards him. She knelt down beside him and hugged him as tightly as she could.

"Dummy..." She said, sounding like she was about to cry. "...you almost got yourself killed."

"But I'm still here, aren't I?" He lifted her chin up, giving her a warm smile. Kibaou had to interrupt them, however, clearing his throat as he began to approach them. _Who gave that asshole a healing potion?_ He thought to himself as he looked over Asuna's shoulder, who was still hugging him tightly. "You've got to be kidding me. You're doing this now, of all places?"

"We still have to finish this, like you said." In all honesty, Kirito just expected him to die somewhere in the midst of the boss fight.

Kirito lifted his hand and stuck up his middle finger. "You're a special kind of stupid, you know that?"

Kibaou growled and drew his sword, placing the tip of it on Asuna's back. "Hey you dumb slut, move out of the way unless you want to end up getting stabbed, too." Was he serious?

Asuna simply turned and also flipped him off. "Piss off, dumbass. You need to learn when to quit." She stood and drew her rapier.

Kibaou backed away. "You're seriously planning on fighting me?" He scoffed. She immediately pressed her blade against his throat, even making a small cut.

"I'm getting really tired of your idiocy. You need to stop being such an arrogant dumbass before someone decides to stick a blade in your gut." She sheathed her rapier and walked back towards Kirito.

The guilds regrouped, and went their separate ways. Klein's guild headed for the third floor, as well as Kibaou's. The KoB, on the other hand, returned to their headquarters.

* * *

"I suppose the first thing I should say, is welcome to the guild. A member, Ryu, died in the line of duty today, and while his loss is tragic and he will be missed, it does mean Asuna is now permitted to join the guild. You both displayed great courage and combat prowess, and we gladly accept you into the guild." Heathcliff told the two of them. Kirito breathed a sigh of relief. "I have assigned Kuradeel to protect the two of you-"

"We protect each other. No disrespect towards Kuradeel, but we are more than capable of defending ourselves." Kirito interrupted.

Heathcliff continued. "He will simply accompany you on any voyages outside of the town. Just to ensure your safety." Kirito clenched his fist, but he knew there was no point in arguing with him. Heathcliff turned to the guard standing next to him. "Derrick, show them where the the members of the guild sleep. We will not be relocating the headquarters until it becomes necessary." Derrick nodded, and walked between Kirito and Asuna.

"Follow me." He led them up a flight of stairs, and two hallways appeared before them. "Just pick a room that isn't marked as taken. Each has two beds and a bathroom." The man walked back down the stairs. Kirito walked up to one of the rooms labeled '6A'. He opened the door, signifying it was vacant. The description was accurate; two beds, one door that supposedly led to a bathroom, and a window in the center of the wall opposite the entrance. Kirito unequipped his boots and sword, and jumped into one of the beds.

"What are you doing?" Asuna asked.

"Sleeping. They could call us out for a mission any time, including the middle of the night. We'd better rest while we can."

"Oh, I get it." She set down her rapier and got into one of the beds. She looked across at Kirito, who was already beginning to drift off. "I love you." She whispered to him.

Kirito opened his eyes and turned his head to look at her. "Love you too." He said with a warm smile. He closed his eyes and dozed off.

* * *

Kirito was almost to the door when he heard Heathcliff call his name. "Where do you think you're going?" Kirito approached him.

"I was going out for some dinner with Asuna, maybe do a little EXP farming just outside of town."

"First, if you are going to be a member of the KoB, you've got to look the part." He opened his menu. After a few seconds, Kirito saw the notification that a new item had appeared in his inventory. "I feel that it suited your particular taste." It was a long coat, even longer than his Coat of Midnight. He would have been fine with that if it weren't a blinding white with red details.

"Do I really have to wear this? It's a little... flashy." He sounded embarrassed.

"Of course. All guild members must wear the official guild colors - red and white."

Kirito sighed. "Fine." He pressed 'equip' on the item, and his Coat of Midnight disappeared, the long white outfit taking its place. He turned and left the building, Asuna waiting just outside the door with her new outfit on. It was a long coat like his, although slightly more open in the front. It had white boots and a short red skirt that stopped a few centimeters above her knees.

"What do you think?" She asked him cheerfully.

"It's a little... revealing..." He said, gesturing at the short skirt.

"Hey, it could be worse. You remember how a lot of other fantasy games have really skimpy outfits for females, don't you?" He remembered it all too well. It had become a staple in fantasy games. "And they told me it was really expensive to make." She looked at his new outfit. "You look cute." She said, kissing him on the cheek.

He'd never been good in situations like this. He did his best. "Thanks." He kissed her back. "So, dinner?"

"I heard that the restaurant has a really good dessert. But it's a little on the expensive side." Kirito checked his inventory. Ten thousand credits.

"I think I can handle it." They smiled at each other, and the two of them headed for the diner.


	8. Chapter 8

Kirito stood at the entrance to the twenty-third floor, Asuna by his side. Neither of them could believe the incredible progress the guilds had made in the past few months since clearing the first floor. Kirito tried to think of how long they had been in there. At least six months.

They had only had one other incident with Laughing Coffin since the first one thankfully, but the bounties on the two of them had only increased. Surprisingly enough, Asuna had risen through the ranks of the guild to become the sub-commander. Kirito, on the other hand, simply stayed as a member, nothing special. Every time Heathcliff wasn't there to lead them, Asuna was there, Kirito with her. Knowing that they rarely disagreed, and they were some of the best players in the game, Heathcliff relied on them quite heavily; and they never disappointed him.

The guild had relocated to the twenty-first floor not too long ago, into a rather large castle that was almost too big for a guild of their size at eight floors. They had also made close friends with a player named Godfree, a man who appeared to be in his thirties and had a distinctive goatee to compliment his brown, spiky hair. He soon joined the two of them just as they began to walk back to the guild HQ. "So, Kirito, any worries about Laughing Coffin lately?"

"Nope. We haven't heard from them in the past few weeks, but every time I check, the bounty for us is just a little bit higher."

"I see. Any plans for the rest of the week?"

Asuna answered. "We were thinking about going over to a big canyon I heard about. It supposedly has a lot of mobs to kill in there." She paused for a moment. "Care to join? Heathcliff needs Kirito to help him clear out a dungeon."

"I'll consider. What mobs?"

"Wasps and a few goblins. It's a lot of EXP ready to be taken."

"Alright, I'll go. I hate those damned wasps, though."

Asuna giggled. "I'll be sure to kill any that get too close to you."

"I think I'll be fine. Anyways, I'll take my leave then." Godfree walked over to the KoB, who was now leaving the dungeon. The Aincrad Liberation Force headed past the two of them up towards the twenty-third floor.

Kirito and Asuna ran back down the steps to join the other KoB players and mounted their horses. Kirito looked over at Asuna. "You know, even though I've had this since the second floor, I still can't stand how damn bright and flashy this outfit is."

"Will you get over this already? Seriously, how many times have you told me this?"

Kirito sighed. "I know. That's how much it bothers me though."

"Then resign from the guild if it bothers you that much." She said jokingly.

The guild was beginning to move. "I may talk to him about it, actually. Anyways, see you back at the HQ."

* * *

The squad stood outside the entrance to the dungeon. Kirito admired his new blade: Elucidator, a shiny, black longsword with a rather unorthodox handguard that at first made the blade feel slightly unbalanced, but he figured he would get used to it. Much like the Anneal Blade, it was too long to draw from the back. In addition, the blade required a very high strength stat to wield. It was a drop he received from dealing the killing blow to a large mob in a nearby field.

"The main objective is simply to clear the dungeon. We kill the mobs and leave." Heathcliff announced to the party. "Spread out, and kill any hostile mob you see." He slowly opened the door and the group entered. Inside, there was a loot chest in the middle of the room, waiting to be opened. Kirito knew that the moment it was opened, the mobs would spawn. Derrick approached the chest and opened it, deliberately causing the mobs to spawn. Humanoid creatures with stone-like, rough armor, and crude iron blades. Kirito jumped at the nearest one, slicing it in half at the waist. Three more approached him, blades raised and ready to strike. He swiftly dodged the first one and parried another, causing it to accidentally hit the other monster's sword, just barely missing him.

In a 360 degree swing, he cut through all of the mobs around him. This action, however, left him with little time to react to the mob lunging at him. He tried to sidestep the attack, but he received a small cut on his left arm. He used the opportunity to stab the mob in its side, causing its corpse to fall to the floor.

Heathcliff still hadn't lost a sliver of HP, masterfully blocking every strike. Every time a strike missed, he would punish the mob's mistake by swiftly stabbing them, and resuming his blocking stance. Catching a small break in the action, Kirito thought of how Asuna was doing. Their passion for each other hadn't cooled one bit in the few months they had been together. They had even begun to sleep together, and each time they kissed, it seemed a little more intense, like a little more passion was behind it. He couldn't help but wonder when they would take their relationship further...

His thoughts were interrupted by the last mob in the area swinging at him. He ducked, the blade even cutting a lock of his hair. He thrust his arm forward, completely impaling the monster. He lifted his leg and put his foot on its chest, pushing it off his blade. In addition to the EXP and credits, Kirito saw the notification that a new item was in his inventory. He viewed the item and read its name: 'The Silent'. It resembled his Coat of Midnight, in the sense that it was a long, black trench coat. It came with two black steel gauntlets that looked strong enough to stop a sword strike. He was puzzled by the lack of a chestplate, however. Instead, there was a tight-fitting V-neck shirt tucked into a pair of black pants. Either way, he couldn't equip it, being in the KoB and all.

The squad regrouped near the loot chest. "What was inside?" Heathcliff asked.

"Five-thousand credits and a few healing potions." Derrick answered.

"Decent enough." He raised his voice. "Return to HQ by sundown." He said as the group left the dungeon. However, everyone in the group seemed to be surprised by a member of the guild running towards them, a horrified look on his face. "What's the issue?" Heathcliff asked the player.

"Were Asuna and Godfree in a party today?"

Kirito answered. "Yes! What happened?"

He swallowed and looked up at Heathcliff. "Godfree... he's dead sir. We think it was Laughing Coffin."

Kirito felt like he'd been hit by a train. His hands began to tremble as Heathcliff replied. "...And Asuna?"

Kirito wanted to scream when he heard the reply. "Captured."


	9. Chapter 9

Hey! I'll try to keep updating a little more frequently now, considering the one-week absence. Once again, I love all the support I'm getting, I really can't explain how good it feels. :) Anyways, I'll have to change the rating to 'M' for now. I may just change it back to 'T' and put a warning at the beginning of this and the following chapter, mainly because of a little more graphic than normal descriptions of violence, and... well... you'll see for yourself the other reason.

* * *

Kirito joined the other members of the KoB around a massive stone table. Heathcliff was the first to speak. "As most of you know, sub-commander Asuna has been captured by Laughing Coffin." No one spoke a word. "We are here to decide on a proper method to see her return safely. Suggestions?"

Kirito immediately responded. "We need to form a team of the best players in the guild, and attack their headquarters."

Heathcliff remained silent for a moment. "Does anyone have a suggestion other than Kirito?"

Derrick responded after a few moment's silence. "It's suicide. Their guild has over two hundred players, and possibly more than one base of operation. Even if we could pinpoint her location, we'd have to have a death wish to go in."

Kirito retorted. "We have to have her back, whether you like it or not. If we didn't get her back, we would be losing one of our best fighters. I could lead a small group to infiltrate their HQ and wipe them out." He hoped putting more reasoning that wasn't about their relationship would help persuade him.

"Are you insane?! Just because your little girlfriend got captured, it doesn't mean we have to help you get her back! For all you know, she could be dead already! Like it or not, no one is going to help you." Not a sound was heard from the other players.

Kirito swallowed. "Then... then I'll go myself. All I need is a horse and a few potions."

Derrick sighed. "This is asinine, if you want to go kill yourself over a little girl, then by all means, do it. Just do it without wasting some of our equipment."

Another member of the guild finally spoke up. "What do you say about this, Heathcliff? You're being awfully quiet."

"...He can take my horse and five healing potions. But, Kirito... you have to know that almost certain death awaits you."

That was all he needed. He turned and started walking out the door. "Don't try and stop me." He wanted to say something that would leave them in silence. He stopped at the doorway and looked back at the guild. "I'll kill them all."

* * *

Asuna opened her eyes. She didn't recognize her surroundings at first: A dungeon-like room that appeared to be underground, as there wasn't a single window. The only light offered was a torch. Down at her bare feet was a pool of dried blood. She then realized where she probably was as the memories of a few short hours ago came rushing back to her. She had just finished killing all of the mobs in the canyon when she felt her entire body go limp. It was then that she heard the high-pitched scraping noise of two blades hitting each other. After a few moments of what sounded like fighting, she heard a scream, presumably from Godfree, and blacked out.

The next thing to catch her attention was the throbbing headache she felt. The pain suggested she could have been struck in the head by a blunt weapon like a mace, in order to knock her unconscious. Then, she noticed her arms were chained to the stone wall behind her, and that she was nude, save for a few ragged cloths, one acting as a loincloth, the other barely covering her breasts.

A player in a black cloak walked into the room. "Good, you're finally awake. Johnny would like to see you." He continued to walk towards her as he drew a small, thin knife. "But of course, you'll have to be paralyzed so you won't resist." Asuna began to struggle against her binds, but was stopped when the player gave her a small cut on her wrist, causing the timer to appear below her health bar, for one minute.

Three others came into the room and lifted her body off the ground, carrying her into what appeared to be a large, cave-like area. They fastened her arms back onto a wall behind her. A thin figure, once again in a black cloak, approached her as the others left. Even though he had a sword at his hip, he instead equipped a mace from his inventory. "Hello, Asuna."

Asuna lifted her head as the paralysis wore off. "Who... are you?"

"My player name is Johnny Black. I directly serve our guild's leader, PoH." He spoke with a deep, chillingly calm voice.

"...And?"

"...And you are going to die. Not today, however. I want to take my time with someone like you." His face broke into a wicked grin. He brought the mace closer to him, admiring the weapon. "I love the mace. It inflicts pain in such a more... satisfying way than with something like a sword. See for yourself." He raised the weapon, and swung as hard as he could, hitting her in just below her ribs. She screamed at the pain, and closed her eyes. She began to feel sick, and, after a few moments, found herself vomiting.

She struggled to regain her breath. "Kirito will find you... and he'll ki-" She was interrupted by another strike, this time hitting her in the jaw, small spikes on the weapon leaving deep cuts on the side of her face.

"Excuse me?" He said arrogantly. "He'll do what, exactly?"

"He... he'll-" Once again the weapon struck her, cutting deeper into her face.

"I'm sorry, what?" He said, laughing as he grabbed her arm, placing one hand on her elbow.

Her voice almost a whisper, Asuna refused to submit. "...You-" He pushed up with all his strength, and Asuna screamed, almost crying as her left arm snapped. He lifted her chin.

"Aw, don't cry. It's almost over for today." Instead of hitting her again, he put the mace away. Asuna closed her eyes and fully realized how helpless she was. He pinched a part of the fabric covering her breasts, pulled it off, and tossed it to the floor. Asuna refused to open her eyes as he caressed her bare breasts, enjoying every moment of it. She silently prayed that Kirito would burst into the room and save her, but she knew she'd have no such luck.

He moved closer to her, still groping her breasts. He brought his head down, bringing his mouth ever closer to her nipple. "No... please..." Asuna squeaked. This only made him chuckle as he brought her nipple into his mouth. Asuna squealed as he released and raised his mace.

"See you tomorrow." He said as he swung, hitting her in the temple and knocking her unconscious. He called for the others to take her back to her cell.

* * *

"Sorry, Kirito. No one knows where exactly the Laughing Coffin HQ is. You'll have to find one of their members and interrogate them if you want answers. None of the information dealers know where they are."

Kirito sighed. "Thanks, Argo. Are there any members imprisoned that I could find?"

"Not that I know of. Anyways, I've got to get going, it's almost midnight. Good luck in finding her."

"Thank you." Kirito said. Him and Argo went their separate ways, Argo heading back to the local inn, Kirito heading to the town's exit. He turned around as he heard footsteps coming from behind him. He was surprised at who it was, but even more surprising, was what he saw them do. It was Kuradeel, and he quickly put his hand behind his back, like he was trying to conceal something. "Kuradeel? What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I... I just wanted to wish you good luck."

"...Thanks. But... what's behind your back?"

He moved the item into his other hand, bringing his left arm back into view. However, just as he did, he caught a glimpse of some kind of black mark on his wrist. "Also... what was that black mark on your wrist?"

Kuradeel drew his sword and lunged at Kirito, who drew his blade and parried the attack, causing Kuradeel's thin sword to snap in half. Kuradeel backed away, staring in awe and in horror at Kirito. He threw down the remains of the weapon and took off running. Kirito didn't bother chasing him, instead, he changed his grip on Elucidator to where he was holding the weapon like a javelin. Then, with all his might, he threw the blade at Kuradeel, who must have been a good fifteen meters away. The blade sailed through the air, until it finally landed, striking the man in his leg. He fell to the ground in pain as Kirito approached him.

He picked up Elucidator and held the weapon above Kuradeel. "Where is she?" He said coldly. He brought the blade down, stabbing him in his arm. Kuradeel winced at the pain. "Where is she?" He said slightly louder. "Tell me now, or I end your pathetic life."

"You think you can scare me? If I die, then there are hundreds of other members who can take my place. You decided to cross paths with Laughing Coffin, and now, she's paying the price. You'll be incredibly lucky to find her alive. Even then, she'll be raped and beaten." He started to laugh. "There's nothing you can do." Kirito brought his sword down again, impaling Kuradeel in the chest. His health bar began to rapidly deplete.

"You have a few seconds. If you want to see your family again, then I suggest you speak up." Kirito said mercilessly.

"Fine! Fine! Open up your map, I'll show you the exact location!" Kuradeel said in a panic. Kirito opened up his menu and navigated to his map. Kuradeel pointed to a small cave entrance on the twentieth floor. "There. That's where we keep prisoners."

"Thanks." Kirito said as he removed the sword, only to raise it high above his head and bring it downwards one final time. Kuradeel didn't even have time to react before the blade struck his throat, instantly causing his remaining HP to disappear.

Onlookers stared at Kirito in horror. Kirito knelt down and grabbed the man's wrist, showing them the Laughing Coffin tattoo. He didn't even feel the need to say a word, he just sheathed his blade and mounted his horse.

* * *

Asuna once again opened her eyes. Her breasts were still exposed, and she was still in a large amount of pain. She simply brought up her knees to her chest, backed into a corner of her cell, and started to cry. She wondered, was Kirito really going to save her? Was it even possible? And how much longer did she have to suffer?

"K-Kirito..." She cried to herself. She wanted to see him again, to feel his warmth. To feel his lips against hers, to have the comfort of her lover next to her. She shivered in the cold darkness of her cell as she laid down, her sobbing becoming louder.

"Quiet down in there!" She heard a voice shout from outside her cell door. This only made her cry more. A cloaked figure entered the room, mace in hand. The person was too large to be Johnny Black, but was just as intimidating. He hit the upper part of her left arm, then her ribs, then her leg, causing more deep cuts and bruises with each strike. He finally stopped, and kicked her in the back one last time. "Now keep quiet, you dumb cunt." He spat as he left the room, slamming the iron door behind him, leaving Asuna once again alone and cold.

Her crying had reduced to whimpering, not only because of her fear and sadness, but also because if she tried to do anything more, a sharp pain coming from her ribs would shoot throughout her body. Blood was beginning to trickle down from her open wounds. She glanced at her health bar, still at a full one-third. It would likely be full by morning.

Asuna closed her eyes and continued to whimper, wondering if she would ever feel her lover's warmth again.


	10. Chapter 10

Asuna didn't get the slightest bit of sleep that night. All she could do was sit in the corner of her cell, whimper in pain, and pray that Kirito was coming for her. She knew, of course, the risk he would be taking to rescue her, but she tried her best to keep that thought out of her mind. Even though it was likely morning, no one had come into her cell yet. Finally, she heard her door unlock, and another member of Laughing Coffin began to approach her. Without either of them saying a word, he made sure she was paralyzed, and brought her back to Johnny Black, who seemed to be patiently awaiting her return.

"Ah, there she is." He said in the same, sickening voice as he walked towards her, mace drawn. "Are you still going to try and tell me that your little savior Kirito is going to come here and beat me?" She didn't say a word. "What's the matter?" He said as he raised the mace and swung, hitting her in the upper part of her left arm. She was in too much pain to scream. All she could do was let out a small cry. "Come on. What happened to that spirit you had yesterday?"

She finally lifted her head and spoke to him, although it was more of just desperation and blind hope than anything else. "He'll kill you! He'll kill all of you sick bastards!" She screamed at him.

Johnny stared at her. He admired her courage to say something like that, especially when chained against a wall, nearly naked and beaten half to death. He pulled out a small knife from his belt. "You have a lot of courage, I'll give you that." He said as he moved his face closer to her's. "But, probably too much for your own good."

* * *

Kirito jumped down from his horse. He couldn't really call it his horse, as Heathcliff had simply allowed him to borrow it. He looked at the location on the map. He was there, and the cave in front of him matched Kuradeel's description. As he approached, he noticed two players, in black cloaks of course, standing on either side of the entrance. He drew Elucidator as they drew their blades. They stood on either side of him, weapons pointed at him.

One of the players cautiously spoke. "Well, if it isn't the Black Swordsman. Drop the weapon, and you may be allowed to see her again before the two of you die." Kirito didn't respond. He stood in place, waiting for one of them to attack. But he knew they wouldn't attack without reason to.

"Get it over with. You," he gestured at the one to his right. "kill me. Right now. Claim the bounty you all want so desperately." The one to his left lowered his guard, and the one to his right thrust his sword, and should have impaled him. But Kirito parried the strike, leaving his opponent open. He thrust Elucidator, stabbing the player in the center of his chest. He pulled out the blade and blindly swung to his left, unknowingly parrying his next opponent's attack. With the same technique, he impaled, and killed the player. In only a few seconds, he had swiftly killed both of them. Without looking back at his slain opponents, he charged into the cavern, ready for vengeance.

* * *

He raised the knife closer to Asuna. "Don't worry, it will be over soon." He continued to bring the knife closer, until it was resting directly in front of her left eye.

Asuna realized what he was about to do, but too late to say or do anything about it. In a quick motion, he swiped the knife sideways. She felt the unholy pain, as she instantly lost vision in her eye. She felt blood flowing down her face almost immediately. She made a weak scream as he repeated the action to her right eye, leaving her blinded. She wanted to just keel over and bleed out, as long as she didn't have to do this anymore. She couldn't believe it herself, but at this point, she wanted to die.

* * *

Kirito walked down the steps from the area he'd just fought through. He looked at his health bar satisfied, as he had hardly lost any health. He then lifted Elucidator, strangely feeling the urge to grin as he looked at the weapon, covered in blood.

* * *

"Please... just kill me..."

Johnny looked at her and grinned. "Why? I'm not through with you yet." He knelt down in front of her. Asuna yelped as he took hold of what little was covering her, and pulled it off, leaving her completely exposed. Johnny backed away. "For a dumb, insolent bitch, you have quite the lovely body." Tears were beginning to stain her face almost as much as blood. She wanted the sweet release of death almost as much as she wanted to have Kirito wrap his arms around her and tell her that everything was going to be okay. She knew that neither of them could come as soon as she wanted, though.

"...Why are you doing this? What to you gain from this?" Part of her wanted to try and get him to stop, even though she knew better, and the other wanted this to aggravate him, allowing her to hopefully die sooner.

"Because I enjoy it. Need I say more?" He caressed the curves of her body. "In this world, there are no rules, no boundaries, no penalties for your actions. Once punishments are taken out of the question, it is insanity to not embrace your instinct. It is, after all, what makes us human."

"You... you're no human. You're a disgusting, vile monster." He seemed not to notice her words, he just continued to caress her body, using his hands, and sometimes his tongue for the most intimate places. It was even worse not being able to see it happening.

Finally, she felt him stop. He stood up, only to strike her again with the mace. Asuna couldn't see her health bar, but she guessed it was getting incredibly low. She couldn't help but think of how close she was to death. How close she was to freedom. But, as much as she wanted for her pain to end, she still wanted to live to see Kirito more. She figured she was about to die, so she might as well have him in her last thoughts. She wanted to feel his lips, to feel his warmth again. To see the one she loved one last time. "Kirito..." She unknowingly whimpered.

She heard the sound of a weapon being drawn from a scabbard right in front of her. It was finally about to end. But, instead of feeling the pain of her body being pierced and taking her last breaths, she heard a loud slam somewhere to her right. "You!" She heard Johnny Black exclaim. Who was he talking about? "How the hell did you get in here?!" He spat.

Kirito, now covered in the blood of tens of Laughing Coffin members, kept Elucidator sheathed. Johnny charged at him, swinging downward. Kirito moved ever so slightly forward, and caught Johnny's hand just before the blade landed on his shoulder. Grabbing the guard of the weapon, he swung his leg forward, kicking Johnny in the stomach, who was knocked back by the attack. Kirito walked towards his opponent, who was panicking at the loss of his blade. He had been foolish enough to set down the mace next to Asuna. Kirito grabbed the weapon with both hands, and lunged. He swung horizontally as hard as the system would allow, feeling satisfied as the blade made contact, cleaving Johnny in half. His torso fell to the floor, a sliver of health left. Kirito raised the blade high above his head, and with all the strength he could gather, thrust the blade downard, into Johnny's head.

He stood above his enemy's corpse up until it shattered into thousands of little blue polygons. Asuna, on the other hand, had no idea what had just occurred. Kirito walked towards her. "Asuna?" He said, his eyes becoming wet with tears.

Asuna made a small gasp. "K-Kirito..." He brought the healing potion up to her lips, and cut her free from the chains that bound her.

"It's okay. Drink this." Even though she couldn't see it, her health bar completely refilled, until all of her pain finally disappeared. She opened her eyes, overjoyed to see Kirito standing in front of her. He took off his coat and wrapped it around her, covering her nude body.

She wrapped her arms around him tightly, resting her head on his shoulder. "I... I'm sorry..." She said, sobbing. "I've been such a burden on you... the next time something like this happens, you don't have to save me..."

He held her close. "I will. No matter what happens, I'll save you. Once, I promised you would get to see your family again one day. But now, it's more than that. I love you, Asuna. I'll never let go."

* * *

"Impressive." Heathcliff said to Kirito.

"Thank you. I'm not requesting a reward of any kind, but, may I ask that you allow Asuna time to recover?"

"Of course. Both you and her deserve time off. Take as much time as you need, this was a rather difficult challenge for the both of you, and you have more than earned a leave of absence."

Kirito smiled. "Thank you, sir." Kirito left Heathcliff and rushed to their living quarters. Asuna was already there, waiting for him.

She looked up and him and smiled as Kirito sat down on the bed next to her. She quickly grabbed him by his shoulders and passionately kissed him. Once she finally released, Kirito backed away slightly. "Don't do anything you're uncomfortable with. Considering..."

"It's the very least I could do. Either way, why would it bother me? I love you, you're the one I'm most comfortable with."

Kirito placed his hand on her shoulder. "If you say so." He whispered, and he returned the kiss.

Once they released, Asuna looked away from Kirito as her expression changed to one that seemed more fearful. "S-Sorry..." Kirito said.

"It's not that..." She leaned against him. "It's just that... back there, when I was chained to that wall... I... I wanted to die..." She looked like she was about to start crying again. "...I thought I would never see you again..." She moved her head down to his chest, staining his shirt with tears. Kirito lifted her chin up, and once again kissed her.

They stared at each other for what felt like several minutes, even if it had only been a few seconds. "Asuna, I love you."

Asuna hugged him as hard as she could, and whispered in his ear, "I love you too."


	11. Chapter 11

Kirito put his arm around Asuna, who was standing outside on the balcony. She leaned against him. It was their first day at the new house Kirito had bought in a forested section of the twenty-second floor. He looked down at the forest below. The sun was getting progressively lower in the sky, casting a beautiful golden light on the trees ahead of them. Massive storm clouds were also off in the distance. Kirito guessed they would arrive later that night.

There was a small drop-off just beyond the thick foliage, giving the two of them a clear view of the snow-capped mountains off in the distance. There was a light breeze, just enough to rustle some of the smaller branches as well Kirito's hair, who tried to sweep away the bangs falling in front of his eyes. Of course, they were blown right back down in front of his face.

Kirito sighed as he leaned against the railing, muttering, "The hell with it." Asuna giggled at his frustration.

He wondered how she did it. While she certainly seemed a lot less confident than before the events that occurred a week ago, she still largely acted like the Asuna he remembered. Kirito, on the other hand, while joyous to have her back alive, couldn't help but feel increasingly guilty. Yes, they were all sadistic killers, but either way, he had slaughtered tens of them. It was in no way a fair fight, as he vastly out-leveled every single one of them. Was he really so different from them? Some of them likely hadn't even killed their first person, and they died simply because they belonged to the wrong guild.

Kirito pushed the thought aside when he remembered the sight of Asuna, chained to a wall, naked, beaten to near death, and blinded. But when he thought of that, he soon found himself contemplating if it was really worth it to let her come with him. Was the reason she had to endure that simply because he made a bad judgment call? He looked at her for a moment. Her chestnut orange-brown hair naturally flowed in the wind, and her dazzling hazel eyes sparkled in the sunlight.

"What's wrong?" Asuna asked. Kirito realized he'd been gazing at her for several seconds, and she'd noticed. "Why were you staring at me like that?"

"It-It's nothing." Kirito replied. "I... I was just wondering if it was really worth it to let you come with me. Because... if you had stayed behind, then you may not have had to go through what you did." Asuna seemed taken back by what he just said. "This... this was my fault." His eyes were starting to become wet. "You've almost died twice now because of how stupid I am..."

Asuna placed her hands on his shoulders. "It was more than worth it to me. I would do that a thousand times over, as long as I got to stay with you."

"I don't deserve you. I'm a murderer worse than everyone in Laughing Coffin... almost fifty people died at the end of my blade, and I didn't even know a single one of their names. Now, I don't blame everyone for wanting me dead..."

"How... how could you say something like this? After all we've been through, after all you've done... you're saying that I'm not worth it?" She was about to cry herself. "They were all scumbags!"

"Scumbags with families who loved them." Kirito retorted. "I took that away from them, and I almost took that away from yours... even mine... that's why I don't deserve someone who's... as beautiful as you."

Asuna didn't want to cry again, but she doubted she could help it. "Stop! Do you know what I would do if you left me?!" She brought herself closer to him. "I'd... I would... I would kill myself!" She shouted at him, burying her face in his shirt, staining it with tears. Kirito stood in shock, struggling to think of what to say.

"Asuna, stop." It took her several seconds, but she finally looked up at him. "It was worth it. I'm more than grateful to have someone like you."

"You... you're just saying that. I'm a such a mess..."

"I need you, Asuna. In this world, I feel like you're the only one who actually cares about me." He hugged her tightly. "And if you don't believe me, then I'll prove it to you in any way I can."

She moved to where the tip of her nose was practically his. "I guess you can start by kissing me." He gladly obliged, making sure their kiss was long and deep. Kirito had moved his hands down to her hips, and Asuna had her arms over his shoulders and wrapped around his neck. He gently moved his hands up to her back, savoring every moment of it as she held him even more tightly. Neither of them wanted it to end. But, unfortunately, it had to. Kirito felt her soft, silky lips leave his own as they slowly, tenderly released. He opened his eyes to see hers, still mere inches away.

He took the time to absorb just how beautiful she really was. Wispy bangs covered most of her forehead, although they weren't quite as long as his. Her eyes were still shining radiantly in the sunlight, and her face was stained in dry tears. "Is that all you want me to do?" Kirito whispered, secretly hoping it wasn't.

Asuna gave him a reassuring, heartwarming smile. "Far from it."

* * *

Raindrops pelted the balcony outside. There was nothing to light the room except for a small candle resting on the table next to their bed, and the occasional flash of lightning, which was soon followed by a clap of thunder. Each time Asuna jumped a little, squeezing whatever she was holding onto for the next few moments before relaxing again. Lightning once again illuminated the room. However, this time, what followed was a deafening boom of thunder, causing Asuna to quietly yelp and hold onto Kirito as hard as she could. For the moment though, neither of them wanted to mention it.

She rested on top of him, kissing him with nothing held back. She moved her hands down to his waist, grabbing the bottom of his shirt. In a quick motion, she lifted her body up off of his, taking his shirt with her. She tossed it to the side, and once again pressed her lips against his. This time was noticeably shorter, due to Kirito lifting her off.

"What's wrong?" She asked in the sweetest possible tone.

"Nothing. But, I just don't think we should go any further. It just doesn't feel... right. We can keep doing this, if you want to."

"It's fine. I'm getting a little sleepy, anyways. How about you?"

"I'm pretty tired, too." She nodded, and placed her head back down on his bare chest. She lifted it again slightly once an idea hit her.

"Hey, Kirito?"

"Yeah?"

"What's you're real name? I just want to know."

"Kazuto. Kirigaya Kazuto. And yes, that is how I thought of the name Kirito." She grinned.

"Kazuto..." she whispered. "Asuna is also my real name. Yuuki Asuna. Do you have any siblings? What's you're family like?"

"Well... I live with my Aunt Midori and my Uncle Minetaka, even though he isn't around much. My real parents are... gone." Asuna moved to where she could face him easier. "I also have my younger sister, Suguha, but even she is not really my sister. My first cousin, actually. We're like siblings though."

"I'm... I'm sorry..."

"Don't be. I wasn't old enough to remember my parents well."

"Okay. Hey, speaking of, how old are you?"

Kirito thought about this for a moment. "I think I turned fifteen a month or two ago."

Asuna smiled. "I turned fifteen a month ago, also. Anyways, I have my mother, Kyouko, and my father, Shouzou." She paused for a moment. "The funniest thing, is that my brother, Kouichirou, bought this NerveGear and copy of Sword Art Online. He wasn't able to play it on launch day, so I decided to try it out. That's how I ended up here, but, in all honesty, I'm glad it happened like this. If it didn't, I would have never met you. You do live in Tokyo, right?"

"Of course."

"Then I look forward to seeing you in real life when this is all over." She snuggled herself up next to him and closed her eyes. "Goodnight, Kirito. I love you."

Kirito smiled, knowing that one day, he would get to say this to her in the real world. "I love you, too."


	12. Chapter 12

Kirito held Asuna's hand, the two of them strolling through the forest, observing the brilliant scenery. She asked if they could go for a walk in the forest that morning, but it took convincing for Kirito, as it was rather cold; they both knew they were going to need coats if they went. However, she eventually managed to convince him when she told him she'd make them breakfast and dinner.

It was Kirito's first time to wear his new coat: 'The Silent'. It offered a significant increase in the sneaking skill, and also the only coat as far as Kirito was concerned, to muffle the player's footsteps, regardless of what boots the player was wearing.

Asuna felt the need to start a conversation. "So, what's you're family like?"

"Well... my parents- I mean, step-parents aren't ever really around much. My Aunt comes home late at night and leaves early in the morning, so I only ever really get to see her on weekends, but even then she's busy with paperwork. What's you're family like?"

"To be honest, I haven't really missed them much. We're pretty rich, but sometimes I wish we weren't. My brother is basically never around, and the few times that he is, he doesn't spend any time with me. My parents, on the other hand, don't even act like I'm their daughter sometimes. Ever since I was twelve, they've told me about arranging who I'm going to marry, like I shouldn't have any say in it."

Kirito nodded. "Well, they surely love you, don't they?"

"I'm honestly not sure sometimes. Every time I try and make friends, it seems like they're looking right over my shoulder to tell me why I shouldn't be friends with 'that poor scrub.' I don't think they'll be too fond of you, either." Kirito realized how much it made sense. She didn't have any friends in Aincrad before she met him, and she always seemed so direct with her emotions. Because her parents wouldn't allow her to have many friends, she didn't have the best social skills. But, to be frank, he didn't either, considering most of his time was spent in front of a computer monitor, playing games.

"I don't really care. If they don't like us being together, then they'll just have to deal with it." Kirito said confidently.

Asuna looked a little more timid. "Hey, can I tell you something?"

"Of course."

"You... you're the only reason I'm fighting. I... I want to be with you in the real world. To date each other for real..." Kirito tightened his grip around her hand.

"When all this is over... you're the first person I want to see, Asuna." He barely had time to react before she leaned over and kissed him. By the time the kiss had ended, he was lost in the thought of one day, sharing a kiss with her in the real world.

She tugged on his arm. "Come on, let's head back to the cabin."

* * *

Kirito knew they were almost back to the cabin. But there was also something out of place. At first he thought he was hearing things that weren't really there, but as they came progressively closer to the cabin, it became clear that something was there. It sounded like deep thudding, like a large boulder being dropped onto the ground multiple times. Kirito instinctively equipped Elucidator, and told Asuna to stay back. Expecting it to be a large mob, Kirito charged in. What he wasn't expecting, was a girl, who looked even to be younger than him, fighting a massive gorilla.

"Get back!" Kirito exclaimed.

"Oh, please." The girl replied, confidently. Kirito was about to respond, but before he could, she dodged one of the monster's attacks and swiftly stabbed it in the chest. Her form was nearly perfect; the attack didn't so much as graze her, and her thrust was strong enough to completely impale the creature.

Kirito was nearly at a loss for words. "Um... may I ask what exactly was going on here?"

She responded almost instantly, seemingly unfazed from what all had just happened. "I was fighting that mob, idiot." She said playfully. As she approached him, Kirito got a better view of her appearance. Her skin was rather pale, and her hair was a dark shade of violet; almost black. She had a black claymore strapped to her belt, and her torso was covered with a glossy black chestplate. She had absolutely no protection on her arms except for two purple sleeves that left her shoulders exposed. In addition, she wore black boots that came up to her knees, along with a short black skirt underneath a purple dress that was open at the front. "If you must know, I was trying to lead the thing away from where I had a little campsite set up." She spoke with a confident, yet bright, cheerful tone.

"So... who are you?" Somehow Asuna had snuck up on the two of them.

"My name's Yuuki, and I'm thirteen." She replied.

Kirito spoke next. "You seem a little young to be in this place by yourself. Is there anyone else with you?"

"Nope, just me. Besides, I like the challenge of being a solo player; it's more fun that way." She said with an impossibly wide grin. Kirito wondered how she was so confident. Was she just trying to have some fun? Or was she just too much of an airhead to fully grasp the situation?

"Well... where's that campsite you were talking about?" Kirito asked.

"It's just over there." She pointed to a small clearing partially hidden by short trees and shrubbery. "I set it up a few minutes ago, considering that it's almost night." She gestured at the sun. Somehow neither of them had noticed the deep orange sky that always signified dusk was approaching.

Asuna's face lit up. "Hey! You could stay over at our place tonight, if you'd like! Right, Kirito?"

Asuna looked expectantly at Kirito. He didn't want to disappoint her. "Um, well... I guess you could. It's going to be pretty cold tonight."

The girl's face broke into yet another wild grin. "Thank you! I'll go get my stuff." As she went off into the clearing, Kirito turned to Asuna.

"Not that I don't mind her staying at our place for the night, but you kind of put me on the spot there." He spoke quietly to be sure Yuuki didn't overhear them.

"I couldn't help it, though. She seems so sweet." Asuna said, smiling. Yuuki already had her items back in her inventory and was walking their way.

"Just, next time, talk it over a little more, okay? What if it was a bounty hunter who claimed they needed a place to stay?"

"Well, I highly doubt she's a bounty hunter." Before she could continue, she saw Yuuki a few feet away, supposedly packed and ready.

Kirito started to walk back to the cabin. "I guess we're off, then."

* * *

Kirito put the last bite of food Asuna had prepared them into his mouth. He closed his eyes, savoring every second of it. Even if it was just a video game, she was an amazing cook. Yuuki finished her plate, too.

"Mmmm, thank you!" She exclaimed.

Asuna smiled. "No problem! So, do you have anything to sleep in tonight?"

Kirito responded before either of them could continue. "We have a guest bedroom." Kirito gestured at the door behind Yuuki. "The whole room's yours. Do whatever you want."

She smiled once again. "Thanks!"

Asuna stood up from the table. "Well, Kirito, I'm going to bed. Come on up whenever you get a chance." Kirito nodded just as she started up the stairs.

He stood up with his plate in hand, and walked over to Yuuki's side. "You done?" He gestured at her rather clean plate.

"Yep." Kirito took her dish and took it over to the sink.

"So, Yuuki."

"Yeah?"

"You seem pretty cheerful. Like, all the time. Any reason for that?" She stood up and began to walk into the guest bedroom.

"There's more to it, but it's just mainly my personality, I guess."

Kirito was already halfway up the stairs. "Alright. Well, good night, then."

"Good night!" She called out.

* * *

Kirito laid down in bed, looking up at the ceiling. Asuna had her head rested on his chest. "Hey, Asuna?" He whispered.

"Yeah?"

"Does anything seem... off? To you, about Yuuki? I mean, she's nice and all, but it's like she's unnaturally happy, like she's trying to hide something."

Asuna sighed. "Will you quit being paranoid? What gave you that idea?"

"Well, just before I came up here, I asked her why she was so cheerful." Asuna nodded. "She acted like she was trying to avoid the real answer, like there was a deeper meaning behind it. She even said that there was more to it, but it was mainly her personality, whatever that means."

"She's just a happy person. How hard is it to understand?" Kirito closed his eyes.

"I guess you're right. Anyways, good night, Asuna."

"Good night, Kirito."


	13. Chapter 13

"So, how did you two meet?" Yuuki asked as she finished her breakfast.

"We met back on the first floor, actually. We had to party up to deal with the boss, and after we'd beaten it, we decided to stay together." The two of them looked at each other, smiling. "Neither of us have regretted that decision." Just as he finished, a notification appeared on his menu. A new message... from Heathcliff.

"Hey, Asuna?"

"Yeah?"

"How would you feel about getting back to the KoB? Heathcliff just sent me a message saying they needed help clearing the boss on the... the 73rd floor."

Asuna replied immediately. "The 73rd floor?! How on Earth have they made it that far in only a couple of weeks?!" Kirito couldn't help but think the same thing. If they were really on the 73rd floor, then that would mean that they were more than halfway through. Kirito briefly thought of what it would feel like, to be fighting the final battle on the 120th floor, Asuna at his side. And if they continued at the same pace, then they would be out within a few more months at most.

Kirito realized he was getting a little too lost in his own thoughts. "I don't know, either. But it says right here that he wants our help in defeating the boss."

"You didn't tell me you two were in a guild." Kirito had almost forgotten Yuuki was there.

"Oh, um, yeah. We're in the KoB. Heathcliff let us have some time off for..." He really didn't want to tell her the whole story. "...for our help in defeating the bosses. Up until the 30th floor or so, it was mostly Asuna and me killing the bosses. Sure, the others helped, but it would almost always come down to the two of us."

"Wow, and I thought I was good. I'm only a level 87."

_She's a level 87?!_ Kirito thought to himself. She was certainly good, judging from what little of her he'd seen in combat, but to think that she was a level 87? That was just below his level of 94. "That's... that's just below me. How did you get that high?"

She gave him a reply instantly. "Ever since this whole thing started, I've just tried to make the best of it. I've been out searching for loot and more mobs to fight since I got my first sword." It was like she blatantly disregarded the massive risk of death. He wasn't sure if she was too much of an airhead to fully grasp what was at stake, or if she was just having fun. Either way, she may have only been a couple of years younger than him, but she acted almost like a child in their favorite toy store. Then again, that was what he acted like during the beta.

"You do know that your life is at risk, right? One slip-up, and it's game over. Literally."

Yuuki smiled, almost as if she liked that fact. "I don't care too much. When I die, then at least I'll be having a lot of fun leading up to it. I've always liked the idea of going out on a high note, so to speak." Kirito noticed that she used the word 'when' instead of 'if'. Was she expecting to die? And if so, then why wouldn't she quit being so careless? _What is she trying to hide? _He looked over at Asuna, and judging from her facial expression, she was thinking the same thing. Yuuki caught their attention again. "Hey, this is kind of changing the subject here, but... do you think I could get in to the KoB? I can't imagine how much fun it'll be out there, fighting the bosses!" She said so giddily that Kirito wondered for a short moment if she had a few screws loose.

"Well, you've certainly got the skill to join. And after clearing all those floors, I wouldn't be surprised if they were a few players short." Kirito paused for a moment. "But... I need to ask you something. You say that like it's no big deal, fighting the bosses. I almost died back when we fought the 2nd floor boss. It certainly wasn't fun. I guess what I'm trying to say is... it seems like you're a little reckless. Why exactly are you so eager to put your life in danger like that?"

As usual, she replied to him as fast as she could, only this time, her bright expression dimmed slightly. "Look, right now, all you need to know is that I want to make the absolute best of my time in here. I would explain it to you if I knew you a little better, but as of now, I don't know you well enough. Maybe sometime in the future."

Kirito was at a loss of words. At first he was suspicious of Yuuki, that she might not have been as good as her personality made her out to be, but he didn't even begin to consider the idea that it was a more personal matter. If anything, he felt sorry for being so nosy. "Oh... I'm sorry... I didn't cross my mind that it could have been a more personal matter. Sorry if I brought back some bad memories."

She perked back up the moment he finished. "Don't worry about it." She said sweetly.

Just before the silence that followed became awkward, Asuna spoke up. "Well then, should we be off to the KoB? They need our help, don't they?"

"Yeah. Just give me a sec..." He opened his menu, and before long, he had his old outfit equipped with Elucidator strapped to his belt. Asuna noticed the weapon, and realized that she didn't have a weapon of her own except a backup steel rapier.

"Oh! I just realized I don't have my Wind Fleuret anymore! I just have an old steel rapier that's at half durability."

Yuuki once again broke into a joyous grin. "Oh, Asuna? How's this?" In her hand was a shining, bright blue; almost silver rapier. The blade was about as long as the Wind Fleuret's from what he remembered, and the hand guard was a cylindrical shape with small details etched into the metal. The rest of the hilt was mostly silver, and encrusted with tens of small gems, most of which were blue. Looking at Asuna, Kirito could tell she was practically in love with the weapon.

"Ooh! Can I see it? Please!" She sounded almost as giddy as Yuuki.

Yuuki smiled and handed the weapon to her. Asuna looked at the stats of the weapon. The first thing she noticed was its very high durability, probably double that of her Wind Fleuret, and then she noticed just how light the weapon was. As she took a practice swing, it felt almost as if she was simply moving her arm. The weapon was just heavy enough to give her the sensation of holding a weapon of that length.

She read the name of it aloud. "The Lambent Light... how did you get this?"

"I got it a while back as loot from a really hard dungeon. Since I didn't use rapiers, I went to my friend, Lizbeth, who's a blacksmith, to see if she could buy the weapon from me. Surprisingly enough, she didn't have enough credits to pay for it! It's all yours, if you want it."

Asuna's eyes widened. "Really?! I can have this?!"

"Of course."

Asuna wrapped her arms around the girl, hugging her tightly, constantly telling her thank you. Kirito awkwardly looked away from the two of them. "Umm... guys?" The two looked back at him. "Don't you think we should get going? Heathcliff probably wants us there as soon as possible."

"Yes!" The two of them said in unison.


	14. Chapter 14

"Asuna, switch!" Kirito exclaimed as Asuna rolled beneath one of the giant arachnid's legs as it swung at her, slashing upwards and severing the limb. The boss shifted its focus to Kirito just as Asuna got out of its attack range. It thrust its remaining front leg at Kirito, with a barbed tip at the end long enough to completely pierce his body. He easily saw the strike coming and slowed himself ever so slightly, allowing him to leap up onto the leg, and leap again, this time at the monster's head, using the joint as a kind of springboard. He raised Elucidator high above his head, and letting out a battle cry he was certain almost everyone in the area could hear, he thrust downward, feeling the sudden impact jarring his hands as the blade broke through the spider's skull._  
_

There was a long, and surprisingly profound silence. After a few moments, Kirito jumped off the corpse, and sheathed Elucidator. Asuna was quick to join him. "How'd you learn to do that? There haven't been any other bosses like that, have there?"

Even he couldn't particularly explain it. He'd just let his entire body be controlled by his instincts for a few moments, and looking down at the body of the animal shattering into thousands of little blue polygons, he couldn't argue with the results. Klein was next to approach him, followed by Yuuki, who both had a look of awe. "Wow." Klein said, almost dumbfounded. "That... was badass."

Yuuki chimed in. "That was awesome! You've got to teach me how to do that!"

"I guess I just cut loose. There wasn't much to it other than letting myself be controlled all by my instinct." Kirito replied to the two of them as he opened up his menu to see what he'd received from killing the boss. 15,000 credits, and enough EXP to reach Level 95. However, there was a third reward. At first, Kirito couldn't believe what he was reading, but after opening up the description and reading the title several times over, it was certainly real.

'New Skill: Dual Blades - One of the three Unique Skills, this is granted only to the player with the fastest reaction time. It allows the user to potentially double their damage output as well as strengthen their defenses by allowing them to wield two weapons of their choice'.

His thoughts were interrupted by Heathcliff shouting from across the stone cavern, telling the KoB to regroup and return to base. "That's us!" Kirito exclaimed, running past Klein. He looked back at Klein. "We'll catch up later!"

* * *

"So, basically, you can use two swords now?" Yuuki asked.

"I'm guessing. Let me see your claymore." She handed the weapon to him. Working his way through the inventory, he equipped the weapon. The check mark next to Elucidator remained, and a new one appeared next to Yuuki's blade, signifying that they were both equipped. "Alright, stand back." Asuna and Yuuki took a few steps away from him. In a swift motion, he moved both swords to the opposite side of his body, causing his arms to overlap and putting him in the perfect position to swing both of them. He slashed both of the weapons horizontally in an 'X' pattern. A small gust of wind erupted from the center of the attack, even managing to blow down a few bangs in front of Yuuki's eyes.

"Woah..." Yuuki said in awe. "So it really does work." Normally, if a player tried to use two swords, the non-equipped weapon wouldn't cut, or even do the slightest bit of damage. If a player tried to parry an opponent's strike, their blade would pass straight through the weapon, making it useless for defense. It would essentially be dead weight.

He tossed the weapon back to Yuuki. "By any chance, do you know any good blacksmiths?"

She seemed surprised by the question. "Um... yeah. I told I have a friend names Lizbeth who's a blacksmith. She has a store on one of the lower floors." Again, that name. It seemed so familiar to Kirito.

"Do you think she could make me a weapon to complement this?" He held up Elucidator.

Yuuki responded in her signature giddy fashion. "Of course! Her smithing level is almost completely maxed."

Kirito looked up at the setting sun, just above the small buildings at the edge of the town. "Good. Then let's go see her tomorrow."

* * *

"Hey, Yuuki! It's been a little while!" A girl in pink hair exclaimed as the three of them walked in. "When was the last time we saw each other? Wasn't it the 34th floor?" Kirito finally realized why the name 'Lizbeth' seemed so familiar to him. She was the one who sold him the Anneal Blade back on the first few floors. Her appearance hadn't changed at all from what he remembered: Hot pink hair, a few freckles dotting her cheeks, a red dress, a steel mace at her side, and a white blacksmith's apron.

"Yeah! How's it been going for you lately, Liz?" It was like the two of them were destined to be friends. They both had such cheerful attitudes and facial expressions.

"I've been doing fine! Anyways, what brings you back here?"

"Well, I thought you might be able to help my friend, here." She gestured at Kirito.

"Ah, yes!" She walked out from behind the front counter, looking at him with an increasingly odd expression. "Haven't we met before? Like, a really long time ago?"

Kirito removed Elucidator, scabbard and all from his belt. "I think so. I might be the one who bought the Anneal Blade from you on the... second floor I believe?"

"Oh yeah! You were that one guy with an insane amount of money."

"That's me. Anyways, what I was wondering was if you could make me a sword. As good as this or better." He handed the weapon to Liz, who seemed to be thrown off balance by the weapon's sheer weight. She unsheathed the weapon, gazing at it. Finally, she opened up her menu and looked at the stats of the blade.

"An Elucidator... you know this is a rare blade, right? One of the best weapons in the game, actually. I'm not entirely sure I could make one like this." She paused for a moment. "The materials I'll need are on the 25th floor, and we'll have to fight a mini-boss to get it. No one is sure what the thing's actually like, but I've heard it's big enough to where we're going to need at least one extra person to beat it."

Kirito thought for a moment. "Hey! I know someone. I have a friend in one of the smaller floor-clearing guilds. He'll surely help us out." Knowing Klein, he certainly wouldn't pass up a chance to fight something like what she was describing.

"Who are you messaging?" Asuna asked him as he began typing.

"Klein. Yesterday was the first time in a while that we've seen each other, and I just wanted to catch up."

"Do you think he's strong enough?"

"He's the leader of his own guild. He's definitely strong enough." He showed the message to Asuna. "Is this good?"

She read over it. 'Hey, Klein! It's Kirito, and I just wondered if you were interested in helping us fight a mini-boss on the 25th floor. A friend says that it's supposed to be really big, and that we'll need the extra person to do it. You were the first one to come to mind, and since you're a capable fighter, I thought I'd message you. If you're interested, meet us at the entrance of the 25th floor at noon tomorrow'. "Looks good to me." She said. And at that, Kirito pressed the 'send' button.

* * *

Hey! This is a little mini-update here. Anyways, two things. First, I fortunately have a full week off for Thanksgiving, so I'll probably update several times this week. Also, once the break is over, expect about 1-2 new chapters per week. That's the basic routine I've got going. Second, as always, please leave a review telling me your thoughts. It's always encouraging to see a new review posted, even if there is a fair amount of criticism in it. Not encouraging flames, but then again, I haven't seen a single real negative review posted yet (Thank you so much!). Speaking of reviews, please tell me how far you'd like to see this story go! I have a few ideas for after the Aincrad Arc, but at the same time, I don't want this to be longer than it needs to be. P.S. Thanks for 70 follows!


	15. Chapter 15

Kirito heard the familiar voice of Klein call his name. He turned to see him weaving through the small crowd of people at the entrance to the floor. He wore a primarily black samurai's outfit with red details underneath a long black coat, considering the profoundly cold weather. A long katana was strapped to his belt, and his once pink hair was now a dark orange, almost rusty color.

"Hey, Kirito!" He called again as he finally caught up with them. Their group immediately began walking as soon as he arrived.

There was a sense of relaxation once he got there. There was just something about him that kept Kirito at ease. On the other hand, Klein was practically staring at Lizbeth, who didn't seem to even notice Klein's dumb expression. Kirito tried to get his mind off her before it became awkward. "Other than clearing that boss, when was the last time we saw each other?"

Klein replied. "Somewhere in the first few floors I think. So... about eight months or so?"

"That sounds about right. Anyways, how's your guild been doing?"

"We're in the top guilds I think. Its just me and my friends, also. Just us six. I left Dale in charge while I'm gone."

"Dale... which one was he?" Kirito had seen Klein's guild a few times, but he had never bothered to memorize what they looked like or their names for that matter.

Klein seemed almost embarrassed as he put his hand behind his head. "Well, to be frank, he's the fat tank with the big-ass greatsword. And when I say big, I mean like, longer than he is tall."

Aside from being slightly caught off guard by how straightforward Klein's response was, Kirito remembered seeing a particularly large member in Klein's guild back on the second floor. He didn't remember him using a large weapon, though.

There was a few moments of silence. Klein, of course, was the one to start a conversation again. "Hey, do you ever wonder what Kayaba's doing in all of this? I mean, there hasn't been anything said about him since the beginning."

Lizbeth beat Kirito to a response. "Well, if the bastard isn't in jail right now, he's probably laughing at us while we get our asses kicked."

Klein continued. "There's nothing quite as boring as watching someone else play an RPG, though. You ever think he's in the game, hiding? Just, standing by and acting like just another player? It would be less boring than watching all of us."

Asuna was the one to reply, this time. "What idiot would trap himself in his own game? That's like building a prison just so you can be one of the inmates."

Kirito interrupted her. "Not really. It may not be a prison for him. He could have just kept his own logout button and look in sometimes to see how things are going."

Lizbeth butted in. "Well he'd be an even bigger ass if he did that. Secretly mocking us, we have to fight our way through all 120 floors of this hellhole, and he gets to have a front row seat while getting to log out and see his family at the same time." She paused for a moment. "Can we talk about something else? I hate thinking of what all must be happening in the real world."

Klein responded. "Alright. Anyways, do you ever think of what this might have been like... if we weren't trapped? We'd certainly have more virtual reality games, that's for sure." There was a sudden pause.

"What's wrong?" Kirito asked.

"Nothing. Just, speaking of other VR games, imagine if this was a shooter. Think of all the douches with snipers that would be aiming at us right now."

"Man, that would suck. I would've died a hundred times by now." While he was thinking of what that would be like, he also couldn't help but think of what all would be different if they weren't trapped. He would still be friends with Klein, and he wouldn't have been separated from his family, but, at the same time, he may not have met Asuna. He wasn't entirely sure which scenario he'd prefer. He would do almost anything to see his Aunt and cousin again, but Asuna may have been the best thing that ever happened to him. He was just some geek with a love for computers, but now he was in love with a sweet, beautiful girl who was also rich on top of that.

He took his hand out of his coat pocket and pulled her hand out of hers, taking hold of it. Holding hands had become a common thing between the two of them, but even then, she always gave him a smile when he did it. This time was no exception. He turned back to see Klein's face ridden with a glare of jealousy. Klein couldn't hold it in any longer. "Okay, this just isn't fair! I get it that you two are together, but come on! You don't have to make everyone who's single around you feel lonely with all the lovey-dovey stuff!"

Kirito heard Yuuki break out laughing, which reminded him of how little she'd spoken in the past while. She spoke up. "Wow, you're trying way too hard."

"I just want a woman! And this guy here isn't making me feel any better!" Both Kirito and Asuna couldn't help but laugh.

Yuuki facepalmed. "Just... stop. You're making it worse."

Klein sighed. "Fine."

* * *

The five of them carefully stepped along a narrow path on a cliff face. A small gust of wind ruffled Kirito's hair and blew more snow in his face. Lizbeth, who was now leading their group, wrapped her coat even more tightly around her as Asuna snuggled closer to Kirito. Lizbeth spoke rather quietly, trying to overcome her shivering. "He really went the extra mile to screw us over, didn't he? You can take damage if you get too cold, right?"

Kirito answered, although his teeth were somewhat chattering. "No idea. The beta testers never made it to floors like this."

Yuuki spoke up. "Well, if you can starve and dehydrate faster in hot weather, then surely you can start taking damage if it gets too cold." She seemed rather unaffected by the cold, even keeping the front of her coat unzipped. Unlike the rest of them, she seemed to be ignoring the cold rather well. She wasn't shivering at all, and she had no noticeable goosebumps, either.

Lizbeth spoke slightly louder as a small clearing was becoming visible through the snow. "I think it's just up here."

"Do you really think we're in the shape to beat this thing? Didn't Liz say that it was pretty big, and that no one else had ever managed to beat it?" Klein asked.

Kirito relished at the thought of fighting and beating whatever this monster was, in addition to getting his second blade. Lizbeth told them on the way that the mini-boss was rumored to drop a special material called Crystallite, and that it could be used to make very-high quality weapons and armor. Only a small handful of players were rumored to have weapons made from it. Given the weather, he couldn't picture anything other than a large troll-like creature.

The group heard a deep thud just beyond the limits of their visibility. All five of them immediately rushed behind a large boulder. "Did you guys hear that?!" Klein whispered rather frantically.

"Yeah." Kirito said as he removed his outer coat. He put the item back into his inventory.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Lizbeth asked. "Put your coat back on before you freeze to death!"

"Too much weight. A coat that heavy will slow me down way too much, and besides, there's no way this fight will last more than fifteen minutes. I'm going out there to see what it is. Don't jump in until I say to. I'll go out there, and draw its attention. I'll say what it is, probably some kind of troll, and then you guys come in." The four of them nodded.

He drew Elucidator and crept out from behind the boulder, approaching towards the direction the sound came from. He hesitated as he heard a deep, throaty growl; far to deep to be a small animal. The monster's head came into view. It looked at Kirito with piercing, illuminated blue eyes he could see clearly through the blizzard.

"What is it?!" Yuuki exclaimed from behind the boulder.

Kirito needed a moment to be sure he wasn't hallucinating. It was certainly different that what he was expecting, and it appeared to be exponentially larger. He finally answered Yuuki's question. "It's... it's a dragon!"


	16. Chapter 16

Within seconds all five of them had gathered around the dragon, forming a semi-circle in front of it. Through the intense blizzard, all of them could see its piercing blue eyes staring malevolently at them. It moved its head further upwards, making its sheer size quite obvious. For a short few moments, all it did was look at them, almost like it was deciding who to attack first. Of course it chose Kirito, who barely managed to evade the strike. The dragon snapped at him with teeth long enough; and sharp enough; to impale him completely, and a mouth large enough to swallow his entire body afterwards.

Yuuki and Klein both lunged at the dragon, blades raised, although it jerked its head to the left, knocking Yuuki backwards and effectively dodging Klein's attack. Klein quickly recovered and went in for another slash, but the dragon this time knocked him back.

Asuna and Lizbeth maintained their distance as Yuuki and Klein recovered. Both had only received minimal damage to their health bars. The five of them returned to their previous formation, anticipating the dragon's next attack. However, nothing could prepare them for what followed. The dragon raised its head once again, and opened its mouth impossibly wide. Before any of them could realize what was happening, the dragon exhaled in a mighty burst of wind and frost. Kirito felt the cold throughout his body; his fingers, toes, and cheeks being the fastest to go numb. He raised his arms to shield himself, only to feel his arms becoming progressively colder as the dragon's icy breath continued to pelt all five of them. He was the only one that had taken off his outer coat, and he was beginning to regret it.

He finally felt the wind dissipate, believing the attack to be over. He lowered his arms slightly in hopes of seeing what the dragon was preparing to do. To his unpleasant surprise, the beast was charging at him faster than he would have expected from a large dragon. In addition, the monster seemed to be spreading its wings, preparing for flight. Kirito knew what was about to happen, and he was equally aware that he was in no shape to evade the attack. "You've gotta be kidding me..." He muttered to himself as the dragon lifted off the ground, catching him in its talons.

He flinched at the pressure the creature was applying on his torso, as well as the sharp pain coming from his abdomen; likely caused by claws digging into his side. Desperately, clumsily, and blindly, he swung Elucidator upwards, hoping to at least draw blood. He felt the slight impact signifying the blade had connected, and he felt a cold liquid that immediately froze land on his wrist. He could only guess it was the creature's blood.

The dragon let out a short, yet ear-piercing screech as it released Kirito. He had no idea how long he had been in the dragon's clutches until he realized the fall was taking at least three seconds. He braced himself as he impacted the snow, which soon seeped down into the deepest layers of his clothing. He struggled back to his feet, which he had lost all sensation in by that point. He gripped Elucidator tightly as he heard the rhythmic flapping of the dragon's wings progressively getting closer.

For a short second, he saw the monster's eyes a small distance in front of him. Instinctively, he ducked down slightly, and swung upward in an arching motion. He once again felt the impact as a freezing liquid pelted his face and torso. Collapsing in the snow, he glanced at his health bar. A deep blue snowflake icon was just below his half-full health bar. He guessed it was a status effect like paralysis, only this time, it was frost. He heard; and felt; the thud of something large enough to be that dragon land a few meters away.

He heard a feminine battlecry a second before hearing the sound of cold metal stab into bone and flesh. He heard the dragon let out a deep groan, followed by a long, eerie silence. His health bar was also continuing to fall at a rapid pace. By now it was down to one-third, and within another thirty seconds it was down to one-fourth. The silence was interrupted by the sound of footsteps crunching through tightly packed snow.

He soon felt himself being lifted off the ground and then put over someone's shoulder. The person was too tall and muscular to be anyone other than Klein. "Hey, I got him!" Klein exclaimed as Kirito saw his health bar reach one-sixth. He briefly heard the sound of more footsteps approaching the two of them. That was the last he heard before he blacked out.

* * *

Before he opened his eyes, he was profoundly aware of the warmth he was feeling, as well as the extra weight on his body. He slowly opened his eyes, and he was relieved to see that that weight was Asuna, laying down on him with her head resting just below his chin. Her arms were wrapped tightly around his torso. He then noticed he wasn't wearing a shirt, or much in the way of pants, either. In fact, the only thing preventing him from being completely nude was a pair of black boxer shorts.

He then saw that Asuna wasn't wearing much either; she wore only a bra and panties. Strangely though, he didn't feel the slightest bit awkward. He supposed that he trusted and loved her enough so that such a thing wouldn't be uncomfortable.

He looked around the room they were in, as it certainly wasn't the KoB living quarters or their cabin. It was the size of the average inn room, only it was entirely dark wood. Next to their bed was a small table lined with an assortment of small candles. The room had a single window, and it was covered in frost. A fireplace on the opposite side of the room cast a feint orange glow. What caught his eye, though, was Elucidator, and a second blade leaned against the wall next to the door.

He gently nudged Asuna's shoulder. She drowsily lifted her head, only to break into a heartwarming smile the moment she saw him awake. She didn't look away from him until a few moments later, when her expression became more surprised; and embarrassed. She quickly lifted herself off of him and put both hands over her mouth. "S-Sorry... I just thought that it would help get you warm-"

"It's fine. I'm okay with it if you are."

She relaxed slightly. "I-I just wasn't sure what your reaction would be. I wasn't expecting you to wake up in the middle of the night like this." It's not like he was, either.

He gestured over at the two blades. Her smile returned. "Lizbeth made you the second sword, and even restored your Elucidator. She also said that the two weapons should have the exact same stats."

Kirito laid back down. "I'll look at it tomorrow. But for now, we both need some sleep. Speaking of, how long was I out?"

"Klein found your body mostly buried. We gave you a healing potion, but you started losing health again almost immediately. We managed to get out of the mountains with all of the loot we got from the dragon, and since it was getting late, we stopped at this inn. We also got a message from Heathcliff."

"What'd it say?"

"He said we're fighting the boss on the 74th floor tomorrow, and that we need to be prepared. So get some rest." She rested herself back down next to him; arms wrapped around him.

"Wait... just out of curiosity, who got the finishing hit on the dragon?"

Asuna grinned. "I did. Now go to sleep." She paused for a brief moment. "Dummy..." She muttered. "Love you."

He closed his eyes and held her tightly. "Love you too."


	17. Chapter 17

Hey! Sorry that this chapter took so long, but I've been busy this week considering semester finals are coming up. Also, I didn't want to be cheeky and spoil anything, so I had to wait until the new episode came out so I wouldn't get death threats. :P But anyways, here it is. Don't forget to leave a review telling me your thoughts. P.S. Thank you all so much for 90 follows and over 50 favorites! Enjoy!

* * *

Kirito thrust Dark Repulser into the chest of an unfortunate frost troll. It was early morning, and he didn't like the idea of leaving Asuna back at the inn by herself, but he had to try out dual wielding. Lizbeth had kept her word and made him a blade with the materials they received from defeating the dragon, and the result was a sword that was statistically identical to Elucidator, which she had also completely restored. The blade had a hilt that was shaped more traditionally compared to Elucidator's partially open spiked semi-circle design, and got progressively narrower towards the tip, which ended in a large triangle shape. In addition to being shaped differently, it was a bright, reflective, diamond-blue color that was ever-so-slightly translucent. It was a stark contrast to his normal black getup.

He found himself to be enjoying the experience; the extra blade meant he could parry or block while striking with the other blade, or he could catch an opponent's blade with both of his and potentially disarm them. Unfortunately, the beast he had just killed happened to be the last one in the area, and it normally took a full day for mobs to respawn. Other than that, he couldn't wait to take on the 74th floor boss.

* * *

Kirito was preparing to relax with Asuna for the next few hours leading up to the boss fight, when the two of them heard a knock at their door. To their surprise, it was Yuuki. However, she seemed saddened. Her typical bright smile and cheery attitude was entirely absent. "What's wrong, Yuuki?" She gave no reply. She simply sat herself down on one of their beds. Kirito and Asuna sat down next to her.

"It's just...I thought it was time that I told you two something... but I'm afraid of what you might do."

Asuna placed her hand on Yuuki's shoulder. "You can tell us anything. Now, what is it?"

"It's... my secret. Kirito asked me about it a while ago, and I told him I might give him the answer once I got to know you two a little better... but yesterday, after he almost died, and considering how I've been feeling lately... I decided to tell you now. That way... at least you'll know what to expect..." Tears were beginning to form in her eyes. They'd never seen her like this before, and they couldn't help but feel disturbed by it. "I'm dying. Every day I come closer to death."

Kirito wasn't sure if what he'd just heard was real. Yuuki... was _dying?_ "...What do you mean?"

"I mean I'm terminally ill. Every day my pain gets a little worse... I thought that I wouldn't have to face that in a place like this, so I got the NerveGear and a copy of Sword Art Online. At first I didn't feel anything, but once we were trapped in and it had been a few weeks, I started noticing it again. Briefly..." She covered her mouth as tears were beginning to run down her face. "...I considered suicide. I was about to do it... I had my sword raised up to my throat... but then I remembered my family. Even though she also has the disease, my sister taught me to live life to the fullest, no matter what. In that moment, remembering her... knowing I may never see her again... I couldn't do it. After that I went solo, exploring the floors and fighting anything I came across. It was like that for several months up until I met you..." She stopped for a short moment, crying almost uncontrollably. "...I... if I die before we make it out... just know that you were like..." She could hardly say the following words without completely bawling. "...b- brother and sister to me."

Considering her attitude, Kirito knew that her secret must have been something she wasn't proud of. But nothing could have prepared them for this.

Asuna embraced her. "Yuuki..." She was about to start crying, herself. "We'll stay with you until the end. Whenever that may be."

Yuuki could barely stop crying long enough to reply. "...Th- Thank you... sis." As soon as she realized what her final word was, she started sobbing again. Kirito joined Asuna in comforting her.

* * *

Kirito and Asuna walked near the front of the guilds with Klein and Lizbeth. Yuuki had stayed back at the guild HQ upon Asuna's request. Heathcliff was staying near the back of the KoB's group. He'd also spotted Kibaou near the middle of the ALF's group. He wondered to himself how that moron was still alive. The boss room was directly ahead. Kirito made sure that he was ready to equip Dark Repulser and surprise everyone the moment he opened his inventory.

The first line of players entered the room. Their group was in the third. Kirito couldn't help but grin to himself. It was like he was back playing games on his computer, ready to show off a shiny new weapon. He relished the thought of one day, playing a game like this with Asuna and Klein without being imprisoned as he drew Elucidator, patiently waiting for the boss to spawn. However, just as the tip of the blade left its scabbard, the door behind them slammed shut, leaving only the four of them, and a handful of members from the ALF. According to Heathcliff, no one had died to a boss fight since the 67th floor. He silently prayed that this would be the end of that streak.

"Shit! What the hell was that?!" Lizbeth exclaimed in a panic. "We're trapped?!"

"Uh, guys..." Klein said with a fearful tone in his voice as they turned to see the boss at the opposite end of the room. From looking at it, Kirito could see why it had infamously been named the Gleam Eyes. It was a Minotaur-like creature that was easily three meters tall with deep, blue fur and a long, black broadsword. Its distinguishing feature, however, was its demonic blue eyes, glaring malevolently at them.

The small group of players ahead of them charged. "No! What are you doing?!" Kirito screamed at them. Unfortunately, they couldn't hear him over their own deafening battle cries. The monster easily knocked aside most of them, even sending one of the poor men all the way back to the entrance of the room. The four of them stood in horror as his body lay unmoving for a few seconds, then shattered into the hundreds of blue polygons Kirito was all too familiar with. "Get back!" Kirito desperately screamed.

"D- Damn it!" Asuna said as she charged in. Kirito opened up his inventory. He figured that if there was a time to do it, it was now. He tapped 'equip' next to Dark Repulser, and he immediately felt the extra weight of the weapon his right side. He stood and began his charge, driven by the sight of Asuna fighting a losing battle. He unsheathed the weapon and prepared himself for combat. Her health bar was down to two-thirds.

"Asuna, switch!" He called out to her. It distracted her, however, allowing the boss to land a punch, sending her flying backward. He glanced at her health bar. One-third. _At least she'll live..._ He told himself as he raised his blades. The boss finally seemed to notice him. He leaped at the creature, letting out a fierce roar. He swung downward with both swords, knowing it would block. The creature did as he expected, and Kirito landed on the ground in front of it. The boss swung downward at him. He easily dodged and ran at the monster, swinging in an 'X' motion at its stomach. He felt drops of blood pelt his face, but the boss didn't seem to be fazed by the attack, swiftly kicking him back.

_Faster..._ He told himself. He parried the creature's attack and lunged, only to be punched back. _**Faster**_...he continued to tell himself. He lunged once again, barely being stopped inches from its heart. It was down to just over half health. A solid thrust would mean the end of it. **_Faster!_** He shouted at himself. He lunged one final time, using Elucidator to block the creature's broadsword. With all his strength, he thrust Dark Repulser into the chest of the boss.


	18. Chapter 18

Whaaat? Two chapters in two days? Yep. I felt a little bad about holding off the previous chapter for so long, and considering I had my first homework-free night in several weeks, I decided, 'why not'? So here you are. (So close to 100 follows... I can't believe I've made it this far! :D) Enjoy!

* * *

Kirito glanced at his health bar. Either he'd taken a lot more hits than he'd realized, or the boss just hit that hard. From the few blows he'd received, his health was all the way down to one-fourth. Looking down at his body, it made sense. There was a deep gash across his stomach, his chest and torso in general was in a deep, aching pain, and his limbs had all received smaller cuts and bruises.

Asuna ran over to him just as the 'Congratulations!' notification appeared before him. She had lost almost as much health as he had, and it showed. She had a slight limp, her stomach had a deep gash almost identical to his, and a small cut ran down her right cheek. She didn't care, though. She simply threw her arms around him, happy that he wasn't on the brink of death this time.

Klein approached the two of them; Lizbeth went over to the remaining ALF members, scolding them for recklessly attacking the boss. Klein's expression told him that this was no time for celebration. "Three died. More probably would've followed if you two didn't jump in. Seriously, when the pressure's on, its almost scary what you're capable of.

Surprisingly enough, Kirito knew the exact words to say. "I've always been better under pressure." He remembered countless times when he would be playing an MMO and miraculously defeat a boss that vastly outleveled him. It wasn't just that way in games, either; he almost always performed well on large school tests, particularly finals. "I guess it also helps to remember what I'm fighting for..." He turned and looked at Asuna; the two of them locking gazes for a brief moment.

Lizbeth interrupted them as the groups that had been left outside during the boss fight began pouring in. "Where are you guys headed now?"

Klein spoke first. "Back to guild HQ and start training for the next boss. Considering how quick we're getting through the floors now, I'd say it'll be around a week before we meet again."

Lizbeth turned to face Kirito and Asuna. "And what of you two?"

"We're heading back to check on Yuuki. Afterwards I'm probably going to go scouting for the 75th floor boss." Asuna glared at him as if to say, 'Like hell you are'. "...with Asuna, of course." Her expression eased. The two of them stood up, nodding at Klein and Liz. Kirito allowed Asuna to wrap her arm around him to help with her limp. Which made him realize that they'd ran out of health potions a few days ago. They walked past Heathcliff, who upon seeing their condition, told them to head back to HQ and rest.

The man seemed so strange sometimes. He never spoke of his life outside the game, and his benevolent, calm attitude seemed unnatural. In a place like this, no one could be like that all the time. Then he remembered his skill in combat, and told himself: _He's probably just some middle-aged guy who lived in his mother's basement, playing games all the time up until now._ He wanted to believe that, but he couldn't help but feel uneasy around him.

His thoughts were interrupted, unfortunately, by Kibaou. He spoke in the same condescending, arrogant voice Kirito remembered him for. "How many more will die because of your own selfishness? You're a sick fuck, and so's that bitch that's with you."

Kirito let go of Asuna, making sure she could stay standing up without support. "How long will you keep at this? There's not even a point to it any more. We've made it to the next floor, bringing us one step closer to seeing our families again. You're comrades' deaths were tragic and unnecessary, but you're a complete idiot if you think that it's somehow my fault."

He drew his sword. From the looks of it, if they did get into a fight, Kirito would win with ease. "Since everyone's saying you kicked all kinds of ass back there," His tone was painfully sarcastic. "You could have saved them. But you wouldn't dare waste your time on a lower level player."

Kirito snapped. "Maybe they wouldn't have died if you were a better leader! We tried to stop them but they charged in like a bunch of morons! What the hell have you been teaching them?!"

Kibaou took a moment to respond. "You doubt my leadership?" He said coldly.

Kirito drew Elucidator and Dark Repulser. "Yes. Someone as pompous and moronic as you isn't fit to lead anything." From the look on Kibaou's face, it seemed like he was legitimately scared when he saw Kirito holding two blades. "What level are you?"

"...I'm a level 72..."

"I'm a level 95. Asuna is a level 94. Even in our current state, either one of us could easily defeat you."

Kibaou scoffed. "That whore can't do shit. All she ever does is cry for you to come save her just so she can keep fucking you."

Kirito dropped both of his blades. Slowly, he approached Kibaou. "You have no idea what we've been through." Kirito got within Kibaou's striking distance. Down the blade came, only to be blocked by Kirito's gauntlet. He ripped the sword out of Kibaou's hands and snapped the weapon in half, tossing the useless pieces of metal aside.

"What, now you're going to kill me? Just like you did all those supposed 'murderers', who according to you, all have families that they want to get back to-" Kibaou was cut off by Kirito grabbing him by the throat and lifting him off the ground.

He looked Kibaou directly in the eyes. "Asuna is more important to me than anyone in this world, or the other. I'm in no way proud of what I did back then, but if I had to choose between them and Asuna, I'd pick her a thousand times before even considering them. Do you know what they did to her?"

Kibaou struggled to say something, but Kirito's grip was far too tight. "They tortured her, physically and mentally to near death for days on end. They took literally everything from her, and locked her up in a dungeon. They were about to stab a sword into her when I got there. And what would _you_ do if you saw the one you loved most in an unimaginable amount of pain and on the brink of death, knowing that you're the only one who can save them?"

The memory of it made him shiver. He'd tried to forget about that, but in this situation, and as much as he hated it, he could use the facts to his advantage. "So... when I let go of you... if you say another word about her being weak and only wanting to 'fuck' me, then I'll let you know exactly what all of her suffering felt like. And she endured it. I can guarantee you wouldn't, because she's a hundred times stronger than you could ever hope to be." He released Kibaou, who fell to his knees, gasping for breath. "You're a disgusting person. For your sake, I hope we never meet again." He left Kibaou with those final words and returned to Asuna.

"...Wait..." Kibaou said in a raspy voice. "...I... I'm sorry. I was wrong to be like that to you two... and... I don't blame you for being like this. I guess I just couldn't realize what it was like for you two."

Kirito let those words soak in as he breathed a long sigh of relief. He'd settled things with Kibaou without causing bloodshed. "Thank you." He said to him. Just those two simple words, and yet, Kibaou understood. There was a new found respect that he had for Kirito. Looking back on his actions, he realized just how arrogant and self-absorbed he must have seemed.

Kirito could tell though that Kibaou's previous words had an impact on her. She hadn't spoken to him. He kissed her on the cheek. "Hey, don't let anything he said get to you. He just didn't understand."

"I know, but... he was right, in a way. Even since you rescued me, you've had to save me more than once... I really am weak, aren't I..." Her eyes were beginning to glisten.

"Asuna." He stopped walking and faced her directly. "Stop with this. You're stronger than I could ever hope to be. After all we've been through, you've endured it better than I ever could have." She didn't bother responding. She simply hugged him tightly, crying into his shoulder.

Even though her voice was slightly muffled, she was certain he would hear her next words. "I love you." It was a phrase that the two of them had become accustomed to, but each time, it still had the same weight as the first time they shared those words. Each time, a certain indescribable satisfaction was felt. A deep, burning passion for each other that could never be quenched.

Knowing they were the only words that should ever be spoken back after that phrase was said, he held her as close to him as he could and whispered gently in her ear. "I love you too."


	19. Chapter 19

Okay, so here it FINALLY is! First, finals week was hell for me, and every night I was either loaded with homework, tired AF, or both. I'm still pretty damn out of it as of now, so this chapter may not be up to to the typical standards. Furthermore, this chapter was particularly hard to write, mainly due to issues with cohesion and trying to keep the plot flowing, and as a result, it took EVEN longer to get out. I actually had to cut it short so it wouldn't end in an awkward place. So, once again, this may not be as good. On the other hand, I do plan to update multiple times over Christmas break, although as usual, I can't promise anything. That being said, here it is.

* * *

Kirito and Asuna sat back to back. Even though they had cleared the 75th floor, a landmark, no one was celebrating. They were all painfully aware of the deaths they had witnessed in the previous battle. "...How many died?" Kirito asked Klein.

"Fourteen."

He felt his heart sink. Fourteen people perished, and from a single boss. And to think, they still had 45 more floors to clear. The thought of it made him shiver. If he were to die, what would be of his family? What would he be leaving behind? He'd made the promise to Asuna, and he intended to keep it. But these bosses were only going to become more challenging. Would either of them be alive to see the end? Would anyone?

"D-damn... damn it all." Klein muttered to himself. "How the hell are we going to make it..."

He felt Asuna lightly tug his hand. "Kirito... do you think we'll survive?"

He wanted to say yes. But, in the back of his mind, he had a gut feeling that very few people were going to live. "...Why ask that?"

"If you say we'll make it, I'll believe you."

Their chances were in fact slim. He couldn't say for certain whether or not they would see the end of it. But, how would she feel if he said 'no'? That wouldn't help in any way. He didn't want to, but he couldn't say anything different. "We'll make it."

She didn't respond. She simply gripped his hand tighter, even though she heard the doubt in his voice.

* * *

Kirito patiently watched as Ashley put the finishing touches on his new coat. He'd long since grown tired of his old one, and had been wanting to upgrade for quite some time.

"And... here you go!" She said as she handed him the finished product. He checked the item's name as he finished paying her. 'Blackwyrm Coat'. Looking at it, it was similar to his old one, only it had gray accents and a matte black in place of the glossy, almost rubbery shade on his previous outfit. Equipping it, he found it came with a V-neck shirt as well as slacks, short boots, fingerless gloves, and a belt with a large silver buckle. Its color scheme was almost identical to that of Elucidator's.

"Thanks for stopping by!" Ashley exclaimed as he walked out the door, smiling back as if to say 'You're welcome'.

Walking through the forest, he spent a considerable amount of time looking down at his equipment. While he was enjoying the new coat, he couldn't help but notice that the two blades sheathed on either side of his belt looked somewhat odd. They were both rather long; almost touching the ground. But that length meant he couldn't draw them from the back, something he personally disliked doing in the first place, as the action left him open for attack as opposed to simply drawing the swords from the hip and having them ready for use immediately. He figured he was stuck with that method, considering there was no other practical way to sheath them.

However, he instinctively placed his hands on the two blades as he heard a bush rustling a few meters away. In absolute silence, he intimately listened for the next sign of movement. He heard two sounds from the foliage behind him; like the sound of a fabric being dragged against leaves. In a single motion, he drew Elucidator, spun around, and slashed horizontally, immediately hearing a loud 'clank'; the sound of metal on metal contact. A few small sparks flew as he saw the dagger that had been thrown at him snap in half and fall to the floor uselessly.

The dagger's owner sprung from the bushes, sword raised. Before he could even tell what the person looked like, he drew Dark Repulser, ducked under their swing, and slashed at their leg. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the person stumble down on one knee, almost completely falling over. He stepped down on their wounded leg, keeping him immobilized. He raised Dark Repulser, and swiftly thrust it through the person's back. The player slumped over, their health bar now at zero.

It took him less than a second to identify the corpse. They were unmistakably a Laughing Coffin member. The blade looked like something out of one of the horror-themed floors, and their body was shrouded in a black tattered cloak, concealing their face. On his left wrist was the guild's symbol, partially hidden.

His body burst into the hundreds of sparkling blue polygons he'd grown far too familiar with. As if on cue, four more players approached from the thick brush, all presumably Laughing Coffin members. They drew their weapons.

Kirito got into his stance, knowing full and well that one hit from their weapons would be the end. This was Laughing Coffin, after all, so their weapons undoubtedly had paralysis poison applied. He'd long since gotten over the guilt of having to kill his opponents, as they would never show him mercy.

The ones directly in front and behind him lunged. He parried the one in front's attack, and ducked below the second. The ones on the side thrust their blades at him, although he easily parried both at the same time. Using the opening, he slashed at the one to his left, cutting across his torso diagonally. The attack almost entirely depleted his health bar. Bleeding damage would take care of the rest. Using Elucidator's guard, he caught the blade of the one in front, allowing him to thrust Dark Repulser into his chest. His health bar immediately dropped to zero. Spinning around, and using the thick rubber on the bottom of his boots, he kicked the opponent to his right's blade out of his hands, while blocking the remaining player's strike from behind. He impaled the player in front of him with Dark Repulser, only to quickly pull it out and face his final opponent.

He raised both blades, and swung both of the sideways in an 'X' pattern, decapitating his foe. Within seconds, the last of them disintegrated as always. For now, it seemed to be victory. But he knew then what this meant. Laughing Coffin, had returned.


	20. Chapter 20

"You're certain it was Laughing Coffin?" Heathcliff asked Kirito.

"It couldn't be anyone else. They're the only group that still wants to kill me, and they had the usual Laughing Coffin getup. Black outfits, shrouds over their faces, and swords with paralysis on them."

"Hmm. The only way they will stop is if we wipe them out completely. We'll have to find out where their main headquarters is and launch an attack. Take as many prisoners as possible."

"What about PoH?"

"I will hold a meeting later today. We'll decide then whether or not to kill or capture him. But first, we need to find out where they are located. In order to do that, we need one of their members."

"I can take care of that. All I have to do is go to a place where they can easily find me, and wait for them."

"Using yourself as bait? That seems a bit risky, even for you."

"Five attacked me earlier today. They were all dead in just over a minute. I can handle anything they throw at me."

Heathcliff sighed. "Very well."

Just as Heathcliff finished, the two of them heard someone burst through the entrance to the room. To Kirito's surprise, it was Yuuki, who's expression looked like she'd just watched a bloody massacre. "Laughing Coffin, they're in the town, heading this way!" At least he wouldn't have to go searching for them.

"How many?" Kirito and Heathcliff said in unison.

"At least nine!"

* * *

Kirito stood in front of the nine players, Asuna and Yuuki behind him, and both of his blades drawn. One of them stepped forward. "You aren't going to beat us." Kirito said confidently. "If you lay down your weapons now, then we promise all of you a safe passage out of the city." The player continued to approach him, disregarding his statement. "Look, I don't want to kill you, but I will if you make-" Kirito was forced to stop as the player lunged forward, swinging with such speed that Kirito barely managed to dodge the attack.

The player immediately swung again. This time Kirito was able to parry, but his opponent seemed unfazed by it. Before he had time to react, the player kicked Kirito just below the chest with the heel of his boot, knocking him back slightly. For a brief moment, Kirito was stunned. The player actually landed a hit on him. Either his opponent had just gotten lucky, or he was more skilled than regular Laughing Coffin members. Either way, he wanted to end the fight as soon as possible.

He slashed at his opponent's hand, disarming him. With a quick thrust, he impaled the player. Just as he pulled Elucidator from his opponent's chest however, the remaining eight charged at him. Asuna and Yuuki came to his side, along with a few other fellow KoB members. Kirito dispatched the first one with ease, disarming him and slashing down his torso, emptying his health bar instantly.

A second and third engaged him immediately. As always, their form was clumsy and imprecise. He parried the first attack, while ducking under the second and slashing at the attacker's legs. He fell to the ground, writhing in pain as Kirito instinctively swung both weapons behind his head. The expected 'clang' of metal-on-metal contact assured him that his opponent's attack had been blocked. There would undoubtedly be a fourth one to attack him any second, although he used the momentary break to glance around him. One of the KoB members had taken several hits, although the others had but a few scratches. Yuuki and Asuna were both unscathed, of course. He felt a semblance of satisfaction as he saw Asuna impaling one of the Laughing Coffin members with her rapier. She had an unusually fierce expression on her face; in a way, it was as if she was fighting them as a means of payback.

The player he had blocked from behind was still there. By the time Kirito had turned to face him, he wondered why he hadn't attacked yet. He'd given him almost a full second window. He should have taken it. But he didn't, and because of it, Kirito swiftly ended him. The last one of them engaged him without hesitation. He couldn't help but applaud the player's courage, but on the other hand, he was disgusted. It meant that he was just _that_ determined to keep causing death and violence. But this player had the same unusual skill as the first one he fought. Surprisingly, Kirito barely managed to duck under one of his horizontal attacks; he even felt the weapon brush past a lock of his hair. But he couldn't kill him. If he did, it would mean throwing away their perfect chance to learn where the Laughing Coffin headquarters was. He swept his opponent off his legs and slashed the weapon out of his hands.

Kirito waved Dark Repulser just in front of his downed foe as if threatening him. In the most intimidating voice he could manage, he spoke. "Your guild headquarters - where is it?" When he didn't respond immediately, he lowered the weapon closer; to where the tip rested just below his throat. "_Now."_

He heard a muffled grunt. The player's face was covered in a completely black shawl, although he could tell through his exposed eyes that he felt genuine fear. He brought the blade ever closer to his throat. "...F-fine..." He finally answered in a deep, raspy, yet nervous voice. "Open your map." Kirito brought up his map, being sure to keep the blade virtually touching his foe as he stood up. Slowly, steadily, he pointed to a secluded position on the 68th floor, a place that looked to be next to a large mountain, with expansive series of meadows leading up to it. Kirito remembered passing by that place on his way to the 73rd floor. Its exact position suggested it had been dug into a large cliff face or placed on the slope of the mountain, which seemed unlikely.

Heathcliff approached Kirito as other KoB members drug off the Laughing Coffin member, who seemed to still be shaking in his boots. Apparently, Kirito's method of intimidation had worked quite well. "Do you know where exactly that is located?"

Kirito replied. "I believe so. Pretty sure I passed by it when I was heading for the 73rd floor."

"Of course, we can't just send a team out there and have them take care of it. That is, if the location he gave us wasn't false." Heathcliff asked.

"The location he gave me was rather secluded. It would make a decent place for a secret headquarters. But again, sending troops would be a bad move. We'll need someone to scout ahead; make sure the location wasn't fake. I could go there tomorrow with a few others, keep my distance, observe the place long enough to be sure, and come back here."

"No. I'm not willing to risk a valuable player like you on such a small mission. I'll send a few other mid-level members with specific instructions. This way, you can reserve your strength for the assault on their headquarters. That is, if they return with certainty that is their headquarters."

He didn't want to risk a few mid-level players, especially considering he'd seen a few mobs in that area, but he had a point. If they came back with confirmation, he would need as much strength as he could muster for the inevitable assault. "Alright." Kirito said with a long sigh.

* * *

Hey! First, sorry for the hiatus, second, sorry if this chapter felt a little short, and third, sorry if it ended in an awkward place. But anyways, the hiatus is over, and I plan to return to my usual schedule of 1-3 chapters per week. I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, and let's hope 2015 is friggin' awesome. As always, thank you all for the continued support, and please leave a review. As of now, I plan to finish up the Laughing Coffin arc and then go full steam ahead towards the ending. I hope you guys are ready for the final few chapters! :)


	21. Chapter 21

Hey! Just this little pre-chapter update here to say that it will be taking somewhat longer for chapters to be released. The reason for this is because I just simply cannot find as much time as I used to to work on this. To compensate, I will try to make the chapters a little longer. Also, be sure to keep the reviews coming in. If I'm doing something you don't like, I won't be able to know unless you tell me!

* * *

Kirito casually walked past two guards in black cloaks, positioned on either side of the massive steel door. It had only been a few short hours since the group of four returned, confirming the location. Using the equipment of the nine players who attacked the Granzam a full day ago, Kirito, Yuuki, and Asuna used the dark outfits to supposedly fit in among the guild of murderers. It was Heathcliff's idea, of course. Even though it appeared to be working smoothly, Kirito couldn't help but feel at a slight disadvantage, due to having unequipped Dark Repulser in order to not be immediately recognized. Even then though, he was on high alert. If he had somehow faced one of them before and they recognized Elucidator at his side, it could cause suspicion.

It was difficult to initially enter the place, although they managed to get in without attracting attention. The inside was, more or less, what he expected. The atmosphere was gloomy and grim, with a hardly adequate amount light coming from torches mounted on the bare stone walls. Multiple rooms branched off from either side of the massive tunnel, with most containing at least one player. However, the common members of the guild were not their concern. They had to locate PoH if he was there, and as soon as possible. Considering the three of them were very high leveled players, Kirito figured they could handle any of his personal guards. Once he was defeated, an outside team of KoB members would rush in, killing as few as possible and taking as many as they could prisoner, considering that it would be nearly impossible for all of them to be killers.

The thought of that made Kirito feel a slight sense of guilt, remembering the tens of players he'd killed in order to save Asuna months ago. He had to remember though, that they had made the choice to join a group that was founded on the idea of killing innocent players. Even if they hadn't gotten their first kill, they had every intention of doing so if given the chance.

Kirito looked over to Yuuki, who's face was hidden behind a tattered black shroud. Attempting to keep his voice low enough to where no nearby players would hear, he spoke. "Yuuki, do you remember the plan?"

She responded in nearly the same volume. "Yeah. You two handle most of the fighting, and I get ready to send the message to Heathcliff as soon as you're done. Once we do that, we work our way back to them and have them on both sides. Most of them should be down there fighting once Heathcliff's team charges in. Let's just hope they surrender once we have them surrounded."

"We can't have any of PoH's guards escape, though. If they do, they'll bring back reinforcements or raise some kind of alarm. Or both." Asuna added.

"But wait, couldn't we just tell Heathcliff to come on in once we get started rather than wait until we beat them?" Yuuki asked.

Kirito answered. "No. Someone would try to warn PoH and end up interrupting our fight."

"Oh." Was all she replied with. She had, for the most part, returned to her usual self since she revealed her... 'secret' to the two of them, although she wasn't ever truly the same. How could she though? After telling two of her closest friends that she may have mere months to live and no way to stop it, there wasn't really any going back to normal for her. Not that it was very normal to begin with. "Do you have any idea where he might be? I mean, if he's even here?"

Kirito remembered back to when he attacked one of their bases to save Asuna. Johnny Black, or whatever his name was, resided down on the lowest level of the cavern, near the back end. "If he's here, then our best bet would be to check near the back end of the cave and as low as possible. That's where the leader of the base was the last time I was in one of these."

"Wait... you mean you've been in a Laughing Coffin base before?" She said, barely keeping her voice low enough. Kirito realized that he still hadn't told her about what happened to Asuna all those months ago.

"I... I may explain later. It's not something I like to talk about." Asuna glanced over at him. He couldn't fully see her facial expression; just her eyes. Not seeing her face, he couldn't quite tell what she was feeling.

Their conversations stopped as they passed by a group of four. Kirito shuddered as he overheard their conversation. "You should have seen the look on her face when I stabbed her." One of them said.

"You mean she was still conscious? I thought you said you hit her with a mace several times." The other said casually.

"I did. I fucked her up so much that I wasn't sure how she was still alive. I mean, I also cut off one of her legs, too. I guess she wanted to live that badly." He said, almost with a chuckle. Kirito clenched his fist tightly. The fact that they enjoyed the act of torturing so much wanted to make him vomit. He also felt sympathy towards whoever their victim was.

"You piece of shit..." Kirito muttered to himself, quietly enough so no one; not even Yuuki or Asuna could hear him.

Asuna however, exhibited even more disgust. She let out a soft grunt - almost a growl - as well as clenching both of her fists to the point of every single one of her knuckles becoming whitened. "We need to find him. Fast." She said in a deep, angry tone.

"Shouldn't be much farther." Kirito replied as they came to the bottom of a wooden flight of stairs boarded over a mass of rocks. At the end of the hallway in front of them was a single rusted iron door. As far as he knew, this was the lowest point in the cavern. Kirito walked out in front of them and, with a complete disregard for subtlety, kicked the door with all his might. The door slammed open with a loud metallic '_clang_'.

Kirito walked in while simultaneously navigating through his menus to equip Dark Repulser. The room was much better lit than the rest of the cavern, and much better furnished. The walls appeared to be carved out of granite with marble columns placed around the edges of the circular room. At the opposite end was an elevated white marble throne of sorts, with two guards standing down on either side. A hooded figure sat atop the throne. "Who... are you?" One of the guards asked.

Kirito pressed 'equip' on Dark Repulser's menu icon. He felt the extra weight on his belt as the weapon materialized at his side. He immediately drew the two weapons with a leathery rasp. The guards seemed to be stunned at the sight of the dual wielder.

However, he wasn't expecting Asuna to run right past him, heading straight towards the throne. "He's mine!" She exclaimed. The figure stood and drew an elongated cleaver like weapon. The guards seemed to completely disregard her, instead charging straight for Kirito. Just two opponents. For Kirito, that was simplicity. He dispatched the two with hardly the slightest bit of effort.

Asuna, on the other hand, was now in a one-on-one. He'd stepped down from the throne and engaged her in combat. His wide and thick weapon meant he could easily parry strikes from her rapier. However, it also meant she had the lighter weapon, allowing her to strike faster. Her opponent also seemed rather calm and reserved. He hardly did any offensive maneuvers, focusing on defense. He parried and dodged rather effectively. Asuna, on the other hand, was fighting furiously and with nothing held back. She kicked, slashed, and thrust as fast and hard as she could manage. Finally, it happened.

The player slashed downward toward her. Using the guard of her rapier, she blocked the strike and catching his blade. With the heel of her boot, she kicked upward into his stomach, causing him to grunt and become stunned. She yanked away his weapon, and swiftly stabbed Lambent Light into his stomach. His health bar almost immediately depleted. She pulled the weapon from his torso, allowing him to slump from the ground. Standing over him, she thrust down her rapier one last time, piercing his chest and reducing his HP to zero.

His body burst into the signature shining blue polygons. However, the notification that appeared in front of her, was something that neither he, Asuna, or Yuuki, who had been essentially spectating, had been expecting. Their eyes widened as they read the text. 'You killed PoH'.

* * *

So, there it is. What do you guys think? Also, sorry for the two week hiatus of sorts. But, as you likely read above, it is difficult to find time for these. I do plan to keep going, however. I also plan on ending it off once the inevitable showdown with Heathcliff occurs. Anyways, don't forget to leave a review, as always, and I know I say this every time, but it really means a lot to have all this continued support. In case you haven't noticed, status updates will now be posted on my profile. :)


	22. Chapter 22

Yuuki sent the message to Heathcliff just as the notification informing Asuna that the player she had just defeated was PoH disappeared. Kirito and Asuna exchanged looks of utter disbelief as they crept as silently as they could up the creaking wooden stairs. The reason they were silent was not only because of stealth, as they needed to remain as quiet as possible while making their way back to the likely beginning battle, but also because they were at a total loss of words. Not only was it unexpected, but Asuna may have ensured the defeat of Laughing Coffin. In a way, it was as if she had gotten a kind of payback for the horrible things that they brought to her. If it was her intention, it certainly showed. She fought ferociously; to a degree that even Kirito was unsure he could beat. As awkward as it was to say, he was in a way, proud of her.

The three of them gradually lowered their guard as they found that the multiple living quarters were empty of players, likely off near the entrance. Given that he had both blades at his sides and would likely be recognized immediately if there was anyone around, Kirito equipped his typical black getup. Asuna returned to her KoB uniform, and Yuuki to her violet armor. Kirito became more tense as they continued to become closer to the entrance room.

He could already hear fighting. Every few seconds there would be a profound metallic 'clang', which Kirito thought to be the sounds of blades clashing. The three of them walked up a final flight of stairs, bringing the fight into full view. Around eighty Laughing Coffin members with their backs to the three of them against twenty KoB members, who had formed a front line of at least ten men with shields.

Kirito ran up behind the massive crowd of players, Yuuki about ten meters to his left and Asuna ten to his right. Kirito prayed they wouldn't be so willing to throw away their lives. Getting their attention, he exclaimed, "You are surrounded! Surrender now!"

The room fell nearly silent as a number of the Laughing Coffin members turned and saw the three of them, most recognizing Kirito instantly. He continued. "No one here has to die! Please, unequip your weapons and stand down! PoH is dead, you have no reason to continue fighting!" At that statement, Kirito could tell, even though their faces were mostly concealed, that all of them felt a sense of horror and disbelief.

Asuna held up her rapier, which had dried blood coating almost half of the blade. "PoH is dead. Killed by this blade." A few of them had started to unequip their weapons. More and more followed, sitting on their knees as the action was completed. The line of shields parted slightly, allowing a fully armored Heathcliff to walk into the crowd of now defenseless players.

"None of you will face death as punishment. If you cooperate, you will be sent to prison in the Black Iron Palace for an indefinite amount of time. We can assure all of you though, that you will not face any harm whatsoever."

Kirito noticed a slight movement nearby Heathcliff. One of the players had shuffled slightly. He looked in closer. Heathcliff, however, was oblivious to the action. He turned his back for a short moment. Kirito realized far too late what the player was attempting. He sprung up off his knees, knife in hand, and lunged at Heathcliff, aiming for a small parting in the plates of his armor. Kirito tried to shout and warn him, but just as he opened his mouth, the blade made contact. However, instead of cutting through the fabric and slicing into his flesh, the blade shattered with a loud 'crack' and a small explosion of sparks.

Heathcliff turned, a look of horror on his face. Within a second, Kirito saw why. The words appeared in front of the Laughing Coffin member: 'Immortal Object'. Dumbfounded, the player backed away, dropping the remaining grip of the knife. For the first time though, Kirito saw a look of shock on Heathcliff's face. For a few moments, all was silent, every pair of eyes in the room staring at Heathcliff.

In less than a second, he opened his menu, tapped a small button, and disappeared in a flash of blue light. Not like the death animation, but the teleporting animation. Kirito held both blades at his sides, all tension gone, for he was still in awe and horror of what he'd just witnessed. Within a matter of seconds, a player had attempted to kill Heathcliff, only to receive the 'Immortal Object' notification, and Heathcliff teleporting away as the notification disappeared, leaving them with many unanswered questions.

However, one of the players near the front line stood up, somehow having re-equipped his sword, using his free hand to move the shield, and thrust his sword into one of the men, who's health bar dropped to zero instantly. Within seconds, the battle had re-emerged, and the men on the front line seemed to be reduced to a small group in an equally small amount of time. "Damn it!" Kirito said to himself as he reluctantly killed an attacking player. Yuuki rushed into the crowd, fighting them off fiercely with her claymore. Asuna fought nearly as hard as she did against PoH just minutes earlier, easily defeating these lesser-skilled opponents.

Kirito himself did not rush in, merely defending himself against any who approached him. He wanted to think that their goal was still take as many as possible prisoner, but at this point, was that truly an option? He discarded the thought and continued fighting. It had been almost a minute, and the number of players was vastly smaller than it was beforehand. He didn't want to look at the floor; at all the blood that was surely being spilled unnecessarily. Only a handful of KoB members remained, and about twenty Laughing Coffin members remained.

Kirito backed away. He looked over at Asuna and Yuuki, who were both also backing away. He'd had enough of fighting. "Stop!" Kirito screamed. "Stop fighting!" Nearly every head in the room turned to Kirito, including Laughing Coffin. "Look around you! Is this what you want?!" Players began to notice the fresh corpses that were about to disappear from existence, as well as the gallons of blood covering the bare stone floor. Nearly all of us are dead! Please, put down your swords before any more of us die! Think of all the families who will never see someone they love again because of this!" He dropped both of his weapons. "Stop this. Now."

A few players reluctantly unequipped their weapons, after putting distance between themselves and their opponents, of course. More followed, until everyone in the room had unequipped or just simply dropped their weapons. Kirito picked up his two blades, sheathing them immediately. "Now, move outside..." Kirito said as calmly as he could. Kirito counted them as each of them exited the cavern. Only twenty-four remained from an initial number of over one hundred counting both sides. Kirito, Yuuki, and Asuna walked out together.

As he joined the group of players, Kirito looked at the remaining KoB members. "I need all of you to take them to the Black Iron Palace." He heard a few muffled grunts of disapproval from the Laughing Coffin players. "It's what all of you deserve." He said, looking at them. "You joined a guild of murderers. No matter how you view it, you all deserve prison. You're lucky we didn't kill you."

One of them spoke up through a black mask. "We aren't murderers. The system allows it completely with no punishments. If it wasn't okay, there would prohibited."

"You..." Kirito said coldly. "There are repercussions. Because of your actions, that player dies permanently, leaving a family behind. It is murder." The players fell silent. Kirito nodded at the KoB members. All six of them equipped their weapons and began leading them in the general direction of the passage that led to the floor below.

Kirito breathed a long sigh of relief, embracing Asuna. At long last, Laughing Coffin, was gone. But... he had one profound question. What of Heathcliff?

* * *

So, there it is. Now that Laughing Coffin is taken care of, I suppose it really is time for the ending chapters. I hope you guys are excited! Don't forget to leave a review telling me what you liked and didn't, what you thought was satisfying and unsatisfying, and so on. As always, thank you all for the support. It truly means a lot to me. :)


	23. Chapter 23

As Kirito looked ahead at the massive iron gates, he found himself thinking of Heathcliff. He'd left nearly three weeks ago, and hope of him returning had all but diminished. Some doubted if he was even still alive, thinking that some kind of visual glitch occurred, giving the appearance of the 'immortal object' notification even though the knife itself may have actually pierced him.

Kirito knew better, though. He witnessed the blade shatter. But even though he knew that such a thing wasn't a possibility, he still didn't have the slightest idea of what actually happened, or Heathcliff's whereabouts. However, he also knew this was not the time to consider . The gates in front of him undoubtedly held the 95th Floor boss, and he was leading the Floor clearers there alongside Asuna. It was a small army nearly a hundred strong, but given the sheer size of the gates ahead, an army consisting of every remaining player in the game would still look underwhelming in comparison. He estimated the structure to be nearly seventy meters tall, and likely over a hundred meters wide. Large portions of the gate were rusted and cracked, and the top of the construct was lined with jagged spikes.

The doors began to open, echoing noticeably loud creaks throughout the surrounding rocky hills. The sound that followed however, led Kirito to draw both of his swords. Hundreds of rhythmic footsteps could be heard from just behind the gates. As the doors continued to open, Kirito saw a small army likely bigger than their own of orc-like creatures, all armored and wielding spears, longswords, and axes. The monsters quickened their pace as they passed through the opening. Kirito heard the numerous players behind him ready their weapons.

The boss was beginning to come into view. From what he could see, it looked simply like a very tall person, clad in black, spiky armor and wielding a mace nearly as long as Kirito was tall. The weapon would definitely be too heavy for him too use, although he could imagine the boss swinging the weapon easily due to the boss being almost twice the height of Kirito. The orcs continued to march forward, and Asuna, despite having her rapier gripped tightly in her hands and in a fighting stance, took a few small steps back. He soon noticed a large number of the other players doing the same.

Kirito took his stance, preparing for the onslaught. He heard a player behind him squeal, "We're gonna die! Run!"

He gripped his two swords even more tightly. "Hold your ground, hold your ground!" He exclaimed to the players behind him. Within a matter of seconds, he found himself in combat. He parry an incoming strike with one blade, and use the other to slash the enemy attacker. If more than one came at him, he would parry one, dodge one, and use the thick leather of his boots to kick away and block sword swings, spear thrusts, and and slashes from axes.

He'd grown accustomed to the certain predictability of the A.I. in this game. After nearly two years, fighting mobs and even bosses in the game were hardly ever challenging. And from what it seemed, Asuna and Yuuki had learned just as well. The two of them had stayed close, covering each other's back. If one took the few extra seconds to finish a downed orc, the other would ensure they weren't attacked and caught off guard when doing so. Him, on the other hand - the Dual Wielder - didn't particularly need a second person even when facing massive amounts of enemies.

He heard a deep, rhythmic 'thumping' noise as the boss approached, mace in hand. However, it paid no mind to Kirito, instead focusing on the group of players to his left. Instinctively, he exclaimed to the group. "Watch out!"

The boss raise its weapon high above its head, preparing for a downward strike. While the were predictable to an extent, he was always cautious when fighting bosses. Some could change weapons and attack patterns at certain points.

But, instead of swinging downward, the boss swiftly continued to bring the mace behind its back and strike upward viciously. Kirito nearly gasped as four players were sent sailing through the air screaming, their health bars having dropped to zero. With the mace now raised after the initial strike, the boss swung downward, creating a small shockwave that knocked back at least ten surrounding players as well as orcs. The boss swung once again horizontally, wiping out at least five more players.

However, Kirito's heart nearly stopped when he saw Asuna lunge out of the crowd towards the boss. The boss swung once again. Her rapier didn't even touch the surface of his armor before she was flung like a doll, skidding across mud and stone before coming to a stop.

He ducked under another swing from the boss as he frantically sprinted for Asuna, praying she was still alive. He knelt down next to her as he brought a health potion to her lips which dripped in fresh blood. Thankfully, she had somehow retained a minuscule fraction of her health, staying barely alive although unconscious. Her eyes slowly opened. Kirito resisted his urge to jump up in joy and relief. She cracked a smile, almost equally relieved as he was.

Their brief reunion was ended by the thumping sound of the boss' footsteps. Kirito looked behind him to see the boss approaching, already raising the mace. He stood as the boss lowered the mace and swung right diagonally. Kirito swiftly dodged the attack, bringing him to the boss' side. Using his left foot, he stomped down on the boss' calf, bringing it down to one knee. Raising both of his blades, he thrust them into the boss' back, immediately depleting its health. The boss slumped to the muddy ground, dead.

After the expected thirty seconds, the corpse burst into shining blue polygons and Kirito received the 'Congratulations!' pop-up. Forty thousand credits... a new mace that somehow had lower stats than either of his swords... and a set of black, spiked armor that he couldn't imagine anyone wanting to wear aside from Laughing Coffin members. Asuna stood at his side, mud, dust, and blood nearly covering her uniform. She wiped the stream of blood from her chin and lip. Yuuki came running to her side. "Are you okay?!" The girl asked in a panic.

"I'm fine." Asuna said with a gentle smile.

Kirito turned to the remaining players, who all had a grim expression on their faces. "...How many did we lose?" Kirito said hesitantly. He wanted to fall to his knees and cry as soon as he heard the reply.

"Nineteen."

He felt his eyes beginning to water. Nineteen people had perished. Without replying, he simply turned and began walking towards the stairs, which had just appeared. As he approached the first step, he kept his eyes on the ground ahead of his feet. Twenty-five more Floors. It would be impossible.

He placed his foot on the first step. Strangely, he felt a tingling sensation throughout his body. Upon looking down, he saw a faint _glow_ coming from his own body. He looked back at Asuna, who stared at him with a look of fear and astonishment. After a few short moments, he disappeared in a flash of bright blue light.

Kirito examined his new surroundings - or lack there of - as a hundred thoughts raced through his mind as to what was happening. The only explanation that he could think of was a forced teleport. As he looked around him, he realized he was standing on a completely invisible platform, as if his feet rested on plain air. There was not a single piece of solid ground in sight. All around him were clouds, the sun, and empty sky.

He heard a familiar voice from behind him. As he turned to see who was there, his eyes widened. He reached for his swords, only to find they were absent from their usual place at his hip. Only a single name came to his mind. "He-... Heathcliff..."

* * *

So, what do you guys think? I know, it's been more than a couple weeks since the last chapter... just be patient, and I promise it will finally come to a conclusion soon enough. Be sure to leave a review, as always. In addition, feel free to let me know if you spotted the not-so-subtle Lord of the Rings references in this chapter. :D I can't thank all of you enough for the continued support, even when I don't post for weeks on end. Once again, I promise the ending will come if you just be patient with me. See my profile for details. Oh, and one last thing. I deleted those updates from the chapters. Considering how they were pretty much just making the number of chapters larger than it actually was.


	24. Chapter 24

During his brief pause, Kirito couldn't help but stare in shock - and clench his fists in anger - at the person before him: Heathcliff. He may not have been dead, but since he force-teleported Kirito to where he was and seemed to be completely calm, as well as remembering his seemingly willing departure, Kirito was infuriated. If he had been watching them somehow ever since his sudden disappearance, and had the ability to return and help them, then all of those times a player's life was lost to a boss, he could've been there and helped to prevent it. "You bastard..." He said coldly as he reached for his blades, only to find they were absent from his sides. He also noticed Heathcliff who, despite being fully armored and with his large shield buckled to his forearm, was also missing his blade from its usual place at his hip.

Heathcliff maintained his calm demeanor. "Kirito, I know you have a lot of questions right now, and some of them may end up answered. Do not ask them yourself; I teleported you here just so you would be the first to know this. It will be publicly announced in-game as soon as our meeting ends."

"...What is it?" Kirito asked.

Heathcliff replied. "You may know me by my name in the real world. The reason you didn't recognize me is that I allowed myself to keep some traits of my custom character. My voice has also been modified. You may not recognize my name either since it has likely been so long since you last heard it, but I'm almost certain you will remember. My real name is Kayaba Akihiko."

A feeling of realization and horror crept down his spine. Kayaba Akihiko: The creator of Sword Art Online. The one who trapped over ten thousand people, himself included, into a virtual reality death game. "You... you made SAO..."

"Yes." He replied with the same calm and polite tone.

As he was about to speak again, Kirito cut him off. "You trapped all of us in here. All of those deaths... all of those people who would still be alive..." He wanted to cry, scream, and beat the person in front of him until his bloody corpse exploded into the hundreds of shimmering blue polygons. After all, he was the reason he hadn't seen his mother or sister in over two years. He felt his nails digging into his palms. "...How many people are still alive..." He asked, unsure if he truly wanted to hear the answer.

"Out of a beginning number of eleven-thousand eight-hundred and twenty-seven, five-thousand seven-hundred and thirty-three remain." He said it with the same sickeningly calm voice, almost as if the number of deaths amused him. "I wanted you to be the first to know this because, out of the thousands of players I've seen and observed during the past two years, you were one of the only ones with true skill. The others being a few of your friends and a handful of random players. "Because of this, I wanted to speak to you in person."

Kirito gritted his teeth as he felt a knot forming in his throat, and his vision was becoming blurred with forming tears. "...Where is this going?"

"Your skill impressed me so much, I thought I'd give you a special offering. We could return back to the game's world, and fight to the death. If I win, the game continues normally. If I die, then the game will end prematurely, and all of the remaining players will be logged out and returned to the real world. The choice is yours."

He found himself deeply contemplating his two options. If he beat him now, no more players would have to die. That, was something he'd been striving towards since the beginning. He and Asuna could meet in the real world... the nightmare would be over. But if he lost... No, he couldn't. He'd made a promise to her. It was simply a risk he couldn't take. Asuna couldn't live without him... he vividly remembered the words she'd said to him that evening back at their cabin in the forest.

The first tear ran down his cheek. "I... I can't."

"And why is that?" He said with a rather surprised tone, expecting Kirito to accept the challenge wholeheartedly.

Kirito's voice became unsteady, holding back his tears that begged to pour out. This was the man who had trapped him in a death game for two years, keeping him from his mother, and his sister. He had a perfect chance to fight him and beat him, but as much as he wanted to, Heathcliff was the creator of SAO. He made this world. Fighting him would almost certainly lead to death, something he had to avoid at any cost. "I made a promise. One that I won't risk breaking."

Heathcliff let out a small sigh. "...I see."

The man ceased to speak. After a brief moment of dead silence, Kirito began to feel a familiar tingling sensation, as a bright blue glow began to emanate from his body. After a disorienting flash, he found himself standing back on the floating steps to the 96th Floor, in the exact same spot he stood when Heathcliff force-teleported him.

He looked frantically around him. All he could see were hundreds of players marching up the steps. All of them looked unfamiliar, but each and every one of them walked with their heads down, almost as if they had suffered a crushing defeat or lost a friend. He realized then that this was due to Heathcliff sending the announcement what was likely mere seconds ago. A few looked at him strangely, likely confused as to how he seemingly teleported there out of nowhere. But they were the least of his concerns. It had only been a matter of minutes, so Asuna couldn't have traveled far.

He looked back at the field where they fought against the boss. There, sitting down on a boulder, hands covering her face, was Asuna. Klein and Yuuki stood next to her, seemingly comforting her. He sprinted as fast as he could towards them.

Klein heard him coming almost immediately. "You son of a bitch!" He said grinning, clearly joyous to see his return. Asuna lifted her head, tears streaming down her cheeks. Her outfit had also gotten no better; parts were tattered and coated with drying mud as well as her own blood. Not that his was much better.

"Kirito!" Asuna said as she threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. He gladly did the same. "Where were you?" She asked. "While you were gone, there was a notification... it said that Heathcliff was the final boss of the game but, that can't be right, can it?"

Kirito took a moment to catch his breath. "It is, actually. He force-teleported me to some place that wasn't part of the game world, I think. But..." He realized what may happen if he told them about everything that happened then. If he told them he had an opportunity to fight Heathcliff and end the game prematurely.

"...But what?" Yuuki asked impatiently.

After thinking through what details would be best to leave out, he continued. "Heathcliff said that he was actually Kayaba Akihiko. As in, the creator of SAO. He's made himself the final boss apparently, and he wanted me to know this first. He said the main reason was because I was one of the most skilled players in the game, alongside you guys and a handful of random others."

All of them paused, seemingly shocked at what he was telling them. Yuuki was the first to break the silence. "Well, I suppose its good to know we're some of the best players, right?"

Klein answered confidently, although his voice still seemed somewhat uneasy. "Yeah. And hey, if he really is the final boss, I'll bet it will be us going up against him and beating him in the final battle."

"I hope so." Kirito said.

* * *

Asuna snuggled her head next to his, and her arms were wrapped tightly around his torso. A bruise was still visible on her chin, although she remarked it wasn't the slightest bit sore when Kirito had asked earlier. Her breathing steadied, as she seemed to be drifting off. "Asuna?" Kirito whispered.

Her eyes still closed, she answered. "Yes?"

"Can I tell you something?"

"Of course." She replied.

"When I met with Heathcliff earlier today, he offered me a chance to fight with him. He told me that if I were to beat him, then the game would end prematurely and we would be logged out. But... I didn't want to. He made this game after all. Fighting him would be suicide, wouldn't it? I mean, I promised you I wouldn't die. It- it just seemed too much of a risk to me. I know more people are going to die this way, but at least I get plenty of time to prepare, don't I?"

She opened her eyes. "Kirito..." She whispered, followed by a short pause. "I think I would've done the same."

"But I-"

She cut him off. "Shhh... Just rest. Remember, I still love you, more than anything."

Her breathing became steadied once again. Within moments, she seemed to be fast asleep. He couldn't help but think of her last words to him. He felt comforted in the fact that they were true. After all, he felt the same.

* * *

So, there it is! I plan to make 1-2 more chapters before the conclusion, and I hope you all will bear with me on the slower pace. Once again, see my profile for details, and I hope you enjoyed reading. Don't forget to leave a review, as always. If you have any more specific or unrelated questions, you can always ask me via Private Message. Also, over 150 Favorites and nearly a hundred follows... I can't quite describe how good that feels, and from the bottom of my heart, thank you all.

Also, please notify me of any spelling errors in this chapter, as for some bizarre reason, Spell-Check wasn't working while writing this.


	25. Chapter 25

First off, I feel terrible for the excessively long hiatus this story has been on. But, in all honesty, the passion for this story just isn't there any more. The only thing that is keeping me writing is the number of reviews, favorites, and folllows, and for that, I may just continue like this, posting every several weeks, possible every month or two. I'm sorry to say it, but I'm just tired of writing this. In fact, I had intended to wrap up this story a few months ago, it's just that I came up with a few new ideas to implement that only increased the amount of work I needed to do in order to finish this. I hope you all can understand. But on the other hand, I am willing to give the rights of this story to someone else, so to speak. If anyone is willing to finish this for me, just ask. It may seem strange that I'm doing this, but I want this story to have an ending. I'm just tired of writing it, and I'm ready to move on.

* * *

It seemed strange to Kirito that even in this virtual world, he could still have nightmares. He remembered the dream he'd awoken from a few moments ago vividly. He was down on the ground, and his entire body was paralyzed. The green icon below a player's health bar that indicated the player could no longer move their body was prominently displayed.

Asuna was fighting - and losing - in front of him against none other than Heathcliff. Desparately, she thrust her rapier. The strike merely scraped off of his shield, and unfortunately left her wide open. Before she could pull back her rapier to defend herself, Heathcliff used the opening to send his blade straight through her chest. She dropped her sword and fell to the ground almost instantly. As he was still paralyzed, Heathcliff walked towards Kirito with a sadistic grin on his face, admiring the blood that now stained his sword. Heathcliff raised the blade and swung downwards. That was when he snapped awake.

Fortunately, he had not woken Asuna, whom he was relieved to see resting next to him with her arms wrapped snugly around his waist. He closed his eyes once again, and fell asleep within a few short moments.

* * *

Klein stood a few feet in front of Kirito, his katana drawn and a shining new shield buckled to his left forearm. Asuna and Yuuki stood a few meters away. Klein seemed unsure of what stance to take, as he had never had proper experience with a shield in the game. In fact, despite being in the game for over two years now, he still had no stat points in shields. Unfortunately, none of his other friends had any either, except for Liz, but she was off running her blacksmith shop. Finding her would mean traveling for almost a whole day. His plan was to test each of them individually to see who was naturally best at using a shield, and then train from there.

"Come at me with all you've got!" Kirito exclaimed towards Klein, who still had a look of doubt on his face.

"Surely there's a... better... way to train than this, right? I mean, there are a few mobs that use shields." The katana wielder said, lowering his shield slightly.

"No, there isn't." He said bluntly. "Mobs are always predictable. Humans aren't. Not to mention, he's the one who designed the game. Training to defeat techniques he designed and knows better than all of us won't give us any kind of skill to match his. All of us have almost died at some point from these mobs, and his health has never gotten below two-thirds from what I can remember."

"...Still, this doesn't seem the safest way to train." Klein said, still with a doubtful tone.

Kirito sighed. "Fine, can you think of one better way?"

Klein hesitated. "No... not really."

Kirito swung Elucidator, making sure that the blade would strike the shield, and not Klein. A disoriented Klein was about to protest, but Kirito interrupted him. "Then come on!" He exclaimed. Klein began to approach him with the shield raised, still somewhat hesitant. "Do it as if it were a real fight." Kirito said.

Klein haphazardly swung his katana at Kirito, who easily used Dark Repulser to block the strike. He once again swung at Klein's shield, slowly enough to allow him to block with little effort. "Alright, fine!" Klein said, now with some enthusiasm as he lunged at Kirito with the shield, using it as a kind of bludgeon. Kirito barely dodged the sharp tip on the bottom of the shield. He grinned and swung Elucidator, now with a considerable amount of power. A loud metallic 'clang' could be heard as the sword bounced off the shield, sending sparks flying.

Klein thrusted his katana. Kirito barely sidestepped the attack, which even made a small scratch on the leather of his coat. However, seeing his opening, Kirito swung down Dark Repulser, stopping a few mere inches from Klein's neck. "You left yourself way too open." He said confidently. "Next time you get sidestepped, bring your shield up immediately in case they decide to attack." He looked over at Asuna and Yuuki. "Which of you wants to go next?"

Yuuki immediately started waving her arm. "Me! Me!" She exclaimed.

Klein rested the blade of his weapon on his shoulder. "Come on then!"

Grinning, the girl drew her claymore and approached him. The two promptly began their sparring match as Kirito sat down on the grass next to Asuna. "Just curious, but where did you learn so much about swords?" She asked, leaning slightly closer to him, her cheek almost resting on his shoulder.

"I knew about swords way before I was in this place. I've always had an interest in them, I suppose. In the few years before SAO, I practiced Kendo with my sister quite a bit." He replied.

Before the two could continue, they heard Yuuki exclaim, "Ha! Got you!" Looking at them, Kirito saw that the tip of her claymore rested less than an inch away from Klein's throat. His slightly raised shield indicated that he was unable to raise it quickly enough to block the attack.

"Damn, you're pretty fast." Klein said somewhat uneasily, mainly due to the blade nearly touching his throat. "You can... move it away now."

She lowered the blade, giggling. Klein unbuckled the shield, and turned to Asuna. "Hey, Asuna," He said. "You want to try this now?"

Asuna stood up. "Sure." She said, taking the shield from him and strapping it to her left forearm. "Alright, whenever you're ready Yuuki." She said. Then, she took her stance.

* * *

The four of them stood outside the Granzam. The sun was beginning to set, a"You think today's practicing really did us any good?" Klein asked Kirito.

"It will if we keep going." He replied. "Fighting Heathcliff won't be easy. As much as I hate to say it, one of us may not make it out of this. In other words, we'll need to be as prepared as we possible can."

Yuuki looked at him. "Do you really think we stand a chance? I mean, he's the one who made this world from the ground up."

Kirito thought of what to say. "If we give it our all, we will win. I'm sure of it."

* * *

So, here's the first chapter in... 1 month and 19 days, if I'm not mistaken. I know this chapter was a little shorter than usual, and if you felt this chapter wasn't worth the wait, or was just completely unsatisfying or not on the level of previous chapters, then I appologize. It's just that, again, I don't really have the will to continue this story anymore. If no one wants to finish it themselves, then I may end up actually doing it myself. But it will definitely be a long time. Once again, I hope you all can understand how I feel, and I just want to deeply thank all of you for so many favorites, follows, and reviews. I never dreamed this story would get this much praise.


	26. Chapter 26

Kirito locked eyes with the boss of the 119th Floor. Its gaze seemingly pierced through him, as if it was looking into his soul. It was extremely discomforting and unnerving to say the very least. Its eyes were glowing orange like coals in a furnace, and its pupils were such a deep black, they could only be described as the openings to some kind of void. He quickly glanced at the monstrosity's health bar. It read 12500 HP, a significant amount more than the boss of the previous floor. It seemed somewhat odd, since the beast wasn't very phsically imposing at only what he estimated to be seven or eight feet tall, at least in comparison to some of the past bosses. The rest of its appearance was something straight out of a horror-themed floor. It looked completely hairless, with bulging muscles and grey skin alongside what looked to be blood dripping from its long claws and exposed teeth. The creature in addition had four arms, two on each side.

The beast rushed at him. Considering its size, it was shockingly fast. Kirito realized he had no chance of countering it with its unexpected burst of speed, so he quickly jumped to the side. The monster sprinted past him like it had forgotten he was there. It was now focused on the small group of men that had been behind Kirito. Five of the six men managed to get out of its way. The sixth had been seemingly grabbed and thrown, slamming against the wall a few feet behind him. Almost immediately he had began bleeding from holes in his armor, indicating that the monster's claws had managed to puncture his chest plate.

Kirito brought himself back to his feet as the monster swiftly turned around and began rushing him once again. This time expecting it, Kirito sidestepped and managed to slash the creature's side. A barely discernible sliver of its HP vanished. The beast continued its sprint, and this time began going for Klein. However, after seeing Kirito's method of sidestepping and countering, he managed to do the same. Another bit of its HP disappeared.

The rest of the group entered the boss room. "What the hell is that?!" He heard one of them exclaim in terror as the boss suddenly turned towards them mid-sprint. One of the men up front thrust out his sword, impaling the monster. The man however screamed in horror as the creature, who had only lost another small fraction of its health, gripped the man's wrist and with a quick pull, ripped off his entire arm. The man fell to the ground, howling in pain as his health bar began falling at a massive rate. The soldiers around the fallen man desperately tried to damage the monster. Kirito charged as fast as his legs would allow him, leaping through the air once he'd gotten close enough, and thrust both of his swords through the boss's back. However, the monster seemed completely unaffected. Its health had only gone down slighlty more after Kirito's attack, and without flinching, spun around and ferociously slammed Kirito, tossing him backwards and reducing his HP by almost half. Disoriented, Kirito stood back up, with blood now streaming out from his nose and lip. It took every bit of his willpower to not collapse from sheer pain. He quickly scanned his surroundings, spotting the boss as it attacked another small group of KoB soldiers. However, he also noticed Yuuki rushing the monster from behind. Instead of thrusting her claymore, she slashed downwards, and to Kirito's surprise, cleaved off one of the creature's left arms.

_"__That's it!"_ Kirito exclaimed to himself. He'd realized, that while the monster did not apparently feel pain and had a lot of HP, its weakness was that it could be dismembered. "Don't stab it, cut it apart!" He shouted while running back towards the fighting, drinking a health potion on the way. He noticed Asuna keeping her distance from the fight, and seeing her rapier in hand, Kirito knew why. While her rapier was exceptional at piercing, it simply lacked the momentum to slash effectively, making it almost useless against the boss. However, she did not sit idly, either. Fortunately, she'd stocked up on plenty of healing potions before they went to face the boss. She maintained her distance from the fight, but was immediately able to aid men who'd been injured.

Kirito approached the boss and slashed, cleaving off the other arm on its left side. However, before he had the chance to jump away, the boss jerked to the side and slashed at Kirito. It took him a brief moment to notice, but he was horrified once he saw that _both_ of his legs had been sliced clean off just above the knee. His health bar was now dangerously low, sitting at about 1/7 and falling due to bleeding damage. The boss raised its arm again, preparing to slash downward.

"_Am I going to die?" _Kirito thought as the monster brought its claws downward. Kirito closed his eyes, but death did not come. As his eyes shut, he heard the unmistakable sound of metal cutting through flesh and bone. Looking up, he saw that Klein had cut off both of the creature's remaining two arms in a single slice. Using the opportunity, Asuna moved as quickly as she could to Kirito. Tears filling her eyes and an expression of fear on her face as she saw Kirito lying on the ground, she placed the bottle against his bloodied lips. He gulped down every drop of the potion, and felt an incredible relief as his health bar was restored. He could now once again feel his legs, as well.

Jumping back to his feet, he saw the boss standing before him. Using both of his swords, he lopped off the boss's head and saw its HP finally reach zero. The boss fell to the ground, dead at last.

Asuna stood next to him. "Are... are you okay?" She asked, still with more than a tinge of fear in her voice.

"Yeah... I'll be fine." Kirito said following a long sigh.

"We lost eleven." One of the nearby soldiers announced.

"Well... at least its better than last time." Kirito said under his breath.

"He... he made it this far..." Kirito could faintly hear another one of the men say in referral to one of his fallen friends.

Kirito looked ahead. The stairway to the Final Floor opened in front of them. "We're almost out." Kirito said, putting his arm around Asuna as they began to walk up. She looked at him, her eyes glimmering. In spite of the fierce battle they had just endured, her smile seemed to suggest she was crying tears of joy.

The two of them looked around at the 120th Floor. The sky was overcast, with only a few beams of sun shining through. The landscape was both forested and hilly, with mountains in the distance. Light snowflakes landed on their skin. "The nightmare is almost over..." She said, embracing him.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Wow, it's been what, 10 months? Almost a year? Point is this story has been on a ridiculously long hiatus, and I wouldn't be surprised to see if most of you have forgotten about it. However, I promised I would finish this, and I intend to do so. I also want to thank all of you for keeping this in your Follows and Favorites, and I also want to thank the few people who have posted reviews for this story during the hiatus. I guess what I want to say with all of this, is that the story is back and will be finished. And to all of you, I want to thank you from the very bottom of my heart.


	27. Chapter 27

Klein stumbled up the steps behind them. "So, I think this is twice now that I've saved your life." Klein said to Kirito. "I'm not saying I want anything in return though. I mean, you've beaten how many bosses now?"

Kirito racked his brain. He truthfully had not the slightest clue. All he knew was that he'd likely killed far more bosses than any other players. "Hm, I dunno. I think this makes something like twenty maybe. Could be closer to twenty-five or thirty though." Kirito replied. "Come to think of it, even when I wasn't the one who killed the boss, I'm almost always there fighting. I've missed maybe five or six boss fights in the entirety of my time here."

Yuuki joined the three of them. "I've been to maybe twenty boss fights. And most of the time it's one of you two who gets the kill." She said gesturing towards Kirito and Asuna. "Speaking of, how many do you think you've killed Asuna?" She asked, eagerly awaiting the answer as if the mere numbers were enough to fascinate her.

"Only a few that I can remember. Usually it was just me finishing them off." She exchanged glances with Kirito. "He usually does most of the work anyway."

"Yeah, sounds about right." Klein replied. "I'm gonna go back and grab a few of my other friends and then go look around on this floor for good EXP farms."

"Alright, seeya." Kirito and Asuna said in unison as Klein began his trek back down the long staircase.

Kirito turned towards Yuuki. "Are you going anywhere?" He asked.

"I was planning on heading back to the Granzaam. Resupply on a few materials, grab something to eat and maybe go sell some stuff. What about you two?" She responded. He couldn't help but notice her signature grin stretched across her face. In spite of all they had been through, she never seemed to change. She could witness the most gruesome battle, and seemingly forget about it by the next day. He could've sworn just having her around boosted both his and the soldiers' morale. "You two planning on heading anywhere?"

Kirito and Asuna once again exchanged glances. Asuna spoke for the both of them. "I think we're just going to explore the new floor a little while. We'll head back to the Granzaam later tonight probably."

"By yourselves?" She asked with a puzzled expression on her face. "Eh, whatever. You guys are high-leveled enough to beat pretty much anything that comes your way. Have fun!" She exclaimed as she spun around and began jogging back down to the 119th Floor.

What she said reminded Kirito of the leveling system. He hadn't even thought of it in a week at least. He opened the menu and glanced at his stats. The number below his health bar read one hundred and ninety-three. "Huh. Didn't even know it was that high..."

Asuna sounded confused. "Uh... what?"

"Oh, just my level. Speaking of, what level are you Asuna?"

She opened up her menu. One hundred and ninety-one, she read aloud. "Honestly, once I hit one-fifty I kinda stopped paying attention to it."

"Same."

* * *

The two of them continued strolling through the forest. About thirty minutes ago they had stopped in an NPC village for some food. Kirito still had the aftertaste of seasoned ramen in his mouth. Asuna still had half a sandwich in her inventory.

"So, uh... wait, nevermind." Kirito said suddenly. He was about to ask her a question, though the moment he realized it would be a stupid one, he stopped himself. He was planning to ask her if she ever planned to return to Aincrad if SAO somehow stays available. While he personally may not mind returning to Aincrad occasionally, he doubted many others would share his sentiment.

"...What?" Asuna asked. After a good five or six minutes with little to no conversation between them, she was almost desperate for something to talk about.

"I was going to ask if you've ever thought about coming back and playing SAO if they somehow don't completely shut it down. I honestly wouldn't mind it. I doubt I'd go off fighting, but I'd probably just explore the game world. I sometimes forget how beautiful this world actually is." As Kirito finished, he took a moment just to look around. Even the dreary, wintry landscape of the 120th Floor had a certain majesty to it. What little sunlight pierced through the clouds refected radiantly off the mountains in the distance, and the snow-covered trees around them seemed glow white; a brilliant, pure white. It was a sight he'd likely never get to experience back in the suburbs of Tokyo.

Asuna didn't respond for a moment, as if she was trying to think of her answer. "...I doubt I'll play this game again, even if I had the chance. I'd like to try out another fantasy game if the VRMMO genre as a whole doesn't tank. Hopefully it'll be one with magic and other weapons aside from melee. I might try a shooter if I hear it's good."

"Yeah, a VRMMO shooter would be interesting at the very least. It might cause a resurgence of those old people who've never actually played a game to start crying 'it teaches people how to kill and makes them violent!' I hope that kind of thing stays in the past though."

"Wait... when exactly did people say that?" Kirito found himself caught off guard by her response. Then again, she was only a toddler when those types of claims were becoming things of the past.

Being somewhat socially introverted and a gamer in the real world meant Kirito knew plenty about gaming history. That, and Kirito remembered Asuna telling him about her overbearing parents, thus making her somewhat naive. "They basically died out around 2018 from what I've read. They were pretty common back in the late 1990s and early 2000s."

She took a moment to respond. "...That's pretty stupid."

* * *

Almost an hour had passed since they turned around. The overcast sky had significantly darkened, indicating the setting of the sun. The village they had eaten at earlier was once again coming into view. Seconds ago, Asuna had received to a message from Yuuki, asking them when they planned on heading back to the Granzaam.

"If you're tired, just tell her we probably won't make it back tonight."

"Why only if I'm tired?" She asked.

"I'm also tired. But if you want to keep walking, then we will. Your call."

"Well, I'm exhasted. Want to spend the night in the village? I saw a couple of inns there."

"Fine by me." At that, Asuna tapped the 'Send' option. The village was now in full view. Since she knew where the inn was, Kirito simply followed her. He paid the NPC innkeeper the fee for staying a single night, and he led them to their room. Inside was a frost covered window with dark blue curtains over it, contrasting with the largely wooden interior, which was a spruce-like shade of brown.

Kirito removed the two swords from his belt and set them by Asuna's rapier. Looking back, she had already changed into her sleepwear: a sleeveless pale pink shirt and white panties. She never slept with footwear, not even during the one or two occasions they slept outside.

Kirito equipped a simple black v-neck and boxers as he prepared to get in bed. "You're forgetting something." Asuna whispered with a playful grin. Looking down, Kirito noticed he'd completely forgotten to remove his boots.

"Oh, wow. I think that's a first." Kirito said as he quickly unequipped them.

He climbed into bed. The two of them finally came to rest with their arms wrapped around each other and their legs intertwined. They shared a brief, passionate kiss before exchanging their typical 'I love you's.

As Kirito was drifting off, he felt Asuna shift slightly. Slowly opening his eyes, he saw her smiling.

"What is it?" He murmured.

Still with her eyes closed, she whispered back. "I just can't wait until we finally see each other in the real world. We'll have our first real kiss... go on our first real date..."

Even though he liked to think they were, Kirito knew that all of their interactions technically weren't real. He never kissing her _real_ lips, despite what the game world fooled him into thinking. The thought of them truly sharing their first kiss... "I can't wait until our first kiss either." He whispered, a smile beginning to form.

Asuna's face lit up. She held him more tightly than ever. "Our first kiss..." The sheer thought made her feel ecstatic. She closed her eyes and rested her head on his chest. The comfort and warmth she felt was greater than what any pillow could ever offer. Moments before dozing off, she lifted her head back up. Their eyes met. Softly and tenderly, she whispered, "I look forward to meeting you, Kazuto."

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Please leave a review, if there's something you liked, didn't like, or thought I could've handled better, be sure to let me know so I can strive to do it better in the future! Anyways, the next one or two chapters could possibly be the last. I've enjoyed doing this, and I know I say this every chance I get, but thank you.


	28. Chapter 28

Kirito slowly awoke to an odd tingling sensation throughout his body. Asuna opened her eyes as well. Though his vision was still blurry, he could clearly notice the growing blue light eminating from both of their bodies.

The realization hit him. A forced teleport was happening. After the disorienting flash indicating the actual teleport, Kirito quickly scanned his surroundings. The spawn area looked to be the entrance to the 120th Floor. In the distance, the sun was beginning to rise over the horizon. A few thousand players filled the area as well. Kirito shivered as he realized that these people could be the only ones left alive in all of Aincrad. Fortunately, Asuna had spawned right next to him. Neither of them were in their sleepwear. They were now dressed in their usual gear.

A chill ran down his spine. The scene was far too familiar to the first day of SAO; the day the nightmare begun. The last few players spawned in. Disturbingly, there were no more than five thousand at most. Could this really be all the remaining players? Less than _half?_

Translucent red hexagons began forming in the skies above, with the words, 'System Announcement' glowing on them. A liquid that seemed to be blood oozed through the small spaces between the shapes, slowly forming a colossal cloaked figure. Kirito gritted his teeth. It was _exactly_ like the first day. Glancing over, he saw Asuna had both of her fists clenched. She had an expression of pure disgust and hatred.

The figure spoke. Kirito knew the voice; the mere sound of it made him seethe with anger. The voice was none other than that of Kayaba Akihiko. "Greetings!" The figure exclaimed. "Most of you may know me by my SAO name, Heathcliff! In addition, you will also likely know that _I_ will be the final boss of Sword Art Online!" The crowd roared in anger. Many of them spat insults and threats.

Seemingly unphased, Heathcliff continued. "However, what you do not know, is that this will not be an ordinary boss fight! It has been intended from the beginning to be an ultimate test of the player's skill, and as such, it will be a one-on-one!" The crowd fell nearly silent almost instantly. Kirito's heart sank. He had never fought many shield users, let alone one as skilled as Heathcliff, who also had observed Kirito and knew how he fought. He had nearly every advantage. "So, prepare yourselves, and I wish you the best of luck!"

Kirito struggled not to scream. Their chances of beating Heathcliff had just dropped considerably. The thought of a one-on-one scenario had never crossed his mind. He'd always planned as if it would be like any other boss fight. That was what they had always assumed. Even he and Asuna together could likely beat him; but Kirito by himself? Would he even stand a chance? Could _anyone?_

The cloaked figure disappeared. After a few moments, Kirito and Asuna were teleported back to their room at the inn. Kirito could feel himself losing grip on his anger. He remembered the short conversation he had with Asuna a few hours ago as they were falling asleep. He wanted so desperately to be out of Aincrad; to be with Asuna in the real world. He felt violated; cheated out of something both he and Asuna deserved. Kirito turned to the wall behind him. _"Damn it!" _He screamed, tears now running down his face and punching the wall as hard as he could.

"...You're going to fight him, aren't you?" Asuna said nervously, almost as if she didn't want to hear the answer.

Kirito sat down on the bed. "...I guess I have to." He said hesitantly. "I don't want to... but I may be the only one who can beat him." Asuna knew he was more skilled than her. They were both two of the highest-leveled and most powerful players in the game. But they both knew who was the better fighter.

She tried to act like she knew what to say. "...If anyone can beat him, it's you." She whispered, wanting to comfort him. "You're... so much stronger than me. Stronger than _him._ You've been through a lot more than he has."

The tone of desparation in his voice had faded. "He never ceases to screw us over." A hint of anger was now present in his voice. "I... I'm _going _to kill him..." He said through gritted teeth. "All this, causing the deaths of thousands, and he's still not satisfied apparently. Now he wants to kill us _personally_..." He turned to face her, letting out a tired sigh. The anger in his voice had subsided.

Asuna sat next to him, unsure of what to say. She simply put her arm around him as they laid back in the bed. "Just sleep." She whispered. "We'll head back to the Granzam in a few hours." She felt him fully relax once she rested on his chest.

"...Asuna..." He muttered after a few moments of silence. "...I love you."

* * *

Kirito and Asuna were strolling up to their quarters when they heard the sound of someone running behind them. Turning around, they saw that it was Yuuki. "Hey..." She barely managed to let out, trying to catch her breath, "...a few scouts managed to find a mini-boss on the 120th Floor while exploring it late last night. I didn't message you two because I figured you were asleep."

"Alright, where was it?" Kirito asked, opening the map in his menu.

"Right... there." She said, pointing at a small valley not too far from the 120th Floor's entrance. The position was almost entirely enclosed by mountains, however. "They said it had a lot of HP, so they didn't bother trying to fight it. We decided to wait for you two to get back before we attacked it."

"...So it could be rewarding." Asuna added. "The higher HP mini-bosses typically give out good loot." She checked her inventory for healing potions. Fortunately, she still had plenty at eighteen. "Well, when are we going?"

"As soon as the others are ready." Yuuki responded. "I got our ten highest leveled players and told them to get ready."

Kirito closed the menu after marking the location on his map. "So I'm guessing you guys haven't had any luck in finding the actual boss room." He said, changing the subject.

"Nope." She replied. "We still have no idea where Heathcliff is. But as soon as we find out, I really hope someone kills him." The statement caught both Kirito and Asuna off guard. Never had they heard her speak ill of someone. "I'm guessing you plan on fighting him."

"Yeah, and I don't have any intention of losing, either." He stated confidently.

"Well, if anyone can beat him, it's definitely you." She said smiling.

As she finished, three men came up behind her, with Derrick in the front. "We're ready, the others are waiting downstairs."

"Alright, then let's get going!" Yuuki exclaimed.

* * *

Strangely, the mini-boss simply stood out in the open in the snowy valley. Although it somewhat made sense, since the surrounding mountains formed a kind of natural barrier around the valley. It had been somewhat difficult for all thirteen of them to navigate up and back down the slopes.

From the distance he was at, Kirito could only tell that it was humanoid and around three meters tall. As they began to approach the boss, who's name appeared as 'Knight Tiberon' above its head, Kirito could now see what exactly it looked like. It wielded a massive, intricately decorated spear with a leaf-shaped tip. The weapon was even longer than the being was tall. In addition, it wore thick, gold-plated armor with an enclosed helmet resembling the head of a wolf. The armor covered nearly every bit of its body. The armor must've been part of the reason for its 75,000 HP.

The thirteen of them encircled their opponent, a few of them with shields raised. Oddly, the enemy simply stood there, as if waiting for them to make the first move. As subtly as he could, Kirito nodded at Kunoi, one of the men behind the mini-boss. Swiftly and as quietly as he could manage, he rushed towards it and attempted to thrust his sword into its back. To his horror, the blade merely scraped off the surface of its armor, and before he had time to duck or even raise his shield to block - not that it would've helped much - the mini-boss spun around and slammed him with the side of his spear, knocking him backwards.

Yuuki charged, thrusting her claymore into the Knight's side. Sparks flew and his armor seemed to be dented, but her strike had completely failed to penetrate his armor. The Knight spun around again, kicking her aside.

The Knight now faced Kirito. Dodging a thrust from his spear, Kirito slid underneath the Knight, scanning for a possible weak point in the mini-boss's armor. His joints seemed to be protected only by leather, and there was a small opening at the base of his neck and underneath his helmet. It would be a difficult blow to land, but it could significantly damage the Knight. Kirito went for it, despite still regaining his balance. He jumped to his feet and thrust Dark Repulser upwards. However, the high-pitched _clang_ sound that followed signified that his blade only hit metal.

The Knight simply backhanded Kirito, throwing him backwards. The thick gauntlets it wore made the impact much worse. Fortunately, his HP had received minimal damage. Asuna had begun to rush the Knight as soon as its focus shifted to Kirito. Aiming for a small chink in the armor between the Knight's shoulder and back, she thrust with all her strength. Her rapier met flesh, sinking into his torso and stopping on what was presumably the Knight's chest plate. His HP dropped by about one-fourth.

The Knight seemed to be stunned, as he did not immediately counter attack and let out a muffled grunt. Kirito took this chance. Rushing again behind the Knight, he thrust both of his swords into the backs of his knees. Weaving between the Knight's legs and dodging a haphazard swat from it, he pulled both of the blades with him, slicing the Knight's legs open and causing it to fall on its back. The Knight was down to one third of its health.

Kirito leaped through the air, landing on the Knight's stomach and thrusting both of his blades downward with as much force as he could manage. To his satisfaction, both of the tips of his swords managed to pierce the armor, reducing the Knight's HP to zero. Pulling out his swords and leaping back off of the slain mini-boss, he placed Elucidator and Dark Repulser back in their respective scabbards. The Knight dissolved into blue polygons, leaving behind a 'Congratulations!' message and to Kirito's surprise, a black suit of armor as loot alongside thirty-five thousand credits.

He transferred the armor to his inventory as Asuna approached him. The other men had begun to relax. "Well, that went better that I expected." He said, looking behind her. All ten of them had survived, and with most of their HP intact, even. "We didn't lose anyone, so that's a big plus."

"Uh-huh." Kirito said nonchalantly. He was preoccupied with navigating through his inventory and equipping the new set of armor.

"New set of armor?" Asuna asked. Kirito grinned, deciding to show rather than tell as he tapped 'Equip'.

In a quick flash, Kirito's old coat was replaced with the new armor set. It had a modestly sized greyish-silver chestplate with the face of a wolf etched into the center. Other plates guarded his shoulders, forearms, knees, and shins. Beneath all of it was a black leather coat.

To Kirito's surprise, as he stretched and flexed in the new outfit, he found it didn't hinder his movement to hardly any degree. In fact, he felt more nimble with it on more than he did with his old coat in spite of the plates of armor.

Yuuki couldn't help but stare, wide-eyed and grinning. "So... do you like it?" She asked, eagerly awaiting his answer.

Kirito smiled. "...I think I'm going to like it."

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: So, what did you guys think? I know this one took a little longer than the others, but I spent a little extra time on this one trying to get it to 'flow' like I wanted. Anyways, I hope it turned out well. Be sure to let me know what you think, and as always, I can't thank you enough for the feedback.


	29. Chapter 29

"Hey, Kirito!" He heard her shout from down the hallway as he and Asuna were about to enter their quarters. Yuuki came to a stop, taking a moment to catch her breath before continuing. "Just got a message from one of the scouts..." She said, still panting. "We... we found the boss room."

Kirto felt his heart suddenly begin to beat faster. He wanted to face Kayaba; to beat him in the name of everyone who had died because of him, as well as to finally free both himself and Asuna. Yet, at the same time, he dreaded it. He had plenty of experience in PvP, but he'd never faced an opponent quite like Heathcliff before. Someone who not only likely rivaled Kirito in rank and skill, but also was the person who had literally constructed this world from scratch. In essence, he would be fighting the _god_ of Aincrad.

Kirito didn't realize how long he had been silent until Yuuki spoke up again. "So, uh... when do you plan on fighting him?" Asuna wanted to hear the answer as well.

"Soon, I know that much. Better sooner anyways; we've been in Aincrad long enough." Kirito paused for a moment. "I'll fight him in the next day or two probably. Where is he located, exactly?"

Yuuki pulled up her map, pointing to a location that looked to be at the base of a mountain. Kirito marked the spot on his map. Asuna did, as well. "Well, I guess you guys are going to bed soon. See you tomorrow." She said as she closed her map and began walking back down the hallway.

* * *

Kirito laid in bed, Asuna resting on his chest. For one of the few times in Aincrad, he found himself too anxious to sleep. For a moment, he tried to take his thoughts off of the fight. He simply looked down at Asuna; feeling her comforting warmth as well as the soothed rhythm of her breathing. Her arms were wrapped snugly around his torso. Something about her was always so... reassuring. As long as he knew she was by his side, he felt truly empowered.

However, even that sense of empowerment wasn't enough to overcome his aching fear of facing Heathcliff. Before he'd shifted his focus to Asuna, he had stared blankly at the ceiling, thinking of possible strategies and tactics he could use in his fight for what seemed like hours, even if it had in actuality only been around thirty minutes. Kirito had since concluded that his greatest advantage would likely be his speed. Heathcliff used a substantial shield as well as a longsword large enough to look like it would be better wielded with two hands. With all of that, in addition to his heavy plate armor, his movements were sure to be hindered.

Kirito, on the other hand, was only moderately armored and wielded two blades about the size of normal bastard swords. Surely, he would outmatch Heathcliff with swiftness and offensive capability. Of course, Heathcliff had a defensive capability to match, but if Kirito could get past his shield, even for a split second, all it would take would be a single well-placed thrust at his upper chest, neck, or head. It may not kill him, but pain and bleeding damage would certainly take care of the rest. That is, assuming he allowed the pain and bleeding functions to affect him the same as anyone else.

Not only that, but Kirito also had one other small advantage. A smaller stat he'd first overlooked when he equipped his armor, was that it greatly reduced bleeding damage. It didn't entirely nullify bleeding damage, but it was enough that it would allow him to potentially take a few more hits. It would hurt, but he'd still be alive, and that was what mattered.

He felt his eyes becoming increasingly heavy. Now in a slightly more relaxed state, he looked down at Asuna again. At some point, she had shifted herself to be practically on top of him. He welcomed the feeling. Now fighting to keep his eyes open, he simply placed one arm over her, and let sleep take him.

* * *

Kirito, Asuna, and Yuuki stood outside of the doorway at the base of the towering mountain, seemingly mentally preparing themselves for what could lie ahead. Asuna and Yuuki both agreed to more or less escort him to the boss room, in spite of Kirito's minor attempts to dissuade them. However, the only way to get to the final boss area was through the mountain, and the only way through the mountain was through a twisting cave than ran through the center of it. The scouts had warned them that the path was lined with many hostile mobs. It was inconvenient for them to say the least, as most common mobs were very little to any of them, though they could still prove to be troublesome in larger numbers. On their way to the mountain, the three of them had deduced that they had likely respawned.

"So, how many do you think there are?" Asuna asked, drawing her rapier.

"All they said was that it was enough to give them a little trouble." Yuuki replied.

Kirito drew his swords and readied himself, opening the door slightly. "Shouldn't be a problem for us, right?" He said with a confident grin. The moment he got inside, he was greeted by a few zombie-like mobs sporting tattered leather armor and wielding weathered swords and cracked shields. Just behind their open helmets were hollow, dead faces. They were quicker than Kirito expected, though not near enough to catch him off guard. Even as Yuuki and Asuna entered a moment later, Kirito was already down to one enemy. He thrust his Elucidator into the chest of the last remaining one, then proceeding to pull out his blade by kicking off the corpse.

Now that the mobs had been killed, Kirito took notice of the cave's interior. The pathway was very roughly carved and littered with wooden support beams. The occasional lit torch provided just barely enough light. Continuing ahead into a larger carved out room, the three of them were met by a significantly larger group of the same mobs they had encountered moments ago. There had to have been at least ten, likely closer to fifteen, but regardless, they were defeated in mere seconds. Kirito once again took out the majority. "Hey, save some for us, will you?" Yuuki said playfully.

"Sorry, just figured I might as well get a good warm up." Kirito smiled as the three of them continued into the cave.

* * *

The mobs turned out to be so trivial that Kirito could put very little effort into fighting them and focus on his thoughts. As he was a few minutes away from facing Heathcliff, and likely returning to the real world, his heart was beating gradually faster. This fight would be it. All or nothing. Either he lost and failed thousands of people, some of whom he'd come to deeply care for, or he would be victorious, him and Asuna could enjoy their lives outside a virtual world, and everyone could be free at last after more than two years of being trapped. So many people would finally see their families... people they had been forcefully parted from.

"I guess that's really what I'm fighting for..." Kirito muttered to himself as he slashed open the gut of another mob. Yuuki thought she heard him say something, though she quickly disregarded the thought.

Asuna thrust her rapier through what appeared to be the last remaining mob; the tip of her blade protruding out the back layer of the mob's thin armor. She swiftly kicked the mob off of her blade.

The three of them proceeded, finally coming to yet another doorway, this one easily twice as tall as Kirito. The iron door was vaguely shrouded by thin wisps of fog. Kirito clenched his fists, taking a deep breath. Yuuki faced him, smiling. "I... I guess we'll finally get to see each other for real."

Kirito saw tears welling up in her eyes. "You too." He whispered, hugging her.

She leaned in ever closer, whispering softly in his ear. "Beat him. For me... for her... for everyone."

"I will." He calmly replied, slowly releasing. He turned to face Asuna, who also looked like she was on the verge of crying. The two of them warmly embraced. He whispered so softly as to ensure Yuuki wouldn't hear. "You know, we can get married in the next year or two. So... would you like that?" It took even him a moment to realize he had just essentially proposed to her. He wanted to take it back immediately, but it was already out there. "_Besides..."_, he thought to himself, _"...do I really want to take it back?"_

Asuna wrapped her arms even more tightly around him. After a brief moment of tender silence, she gave him an answer. "Yes... yes I would..." She whispered, actively trying to hide her sheer joy. "I can't wait for our marriage... Kazuto."

The two of them kissed. It was brief - hardly a second - yet to both of them, it was perhaps the greatest kiss they had ever experienced. The two of them released, both of them silently yearning to hold each other longer, as Kirito turned towards the doorway. He placed his hand on it, opening it slightly. A notification on the door appeared eye level to Kirito. The notification read: 'Beyond this door is the final boss of Sword Art Online. Are you certain you wish to proceed?'. 'Yes' and 'No' options hovered below.

Kirito glanced back at the two of them. Then, without another moment of hesitation, tapped 'Yes'.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

First, I don't know how many times I've stated this in the past, but thank you. All of you, from the very bottom of my heart. Feedback from you guys is what keeps me going. Anyways, the final chapter is now upon us! That's right, the next chapter will in fact be the _final_ one. It's been long and one hell of a ride, but it's finally coming to an end. Not too long from now, I'll be marking this one as 'Completed'. Be sure to let me know your thoughts in the reviews, and have a blessed day!


	30. Chapter 30

There he was, standing out in the middle of the snow-covered valley, waiting patiently for someone to challenge him. His sword was in its scabbard, and the bottom of his shield rested on the ground. Kirito didn't charge. He simply continued walking towards him, swords drawn. As he got closer, he could see Heathcliff's face more clearly. His expression was practically emotionless save for a small grin. The man drew his sword, resting the blade on his shoulder as he lifted his shield. "Hello, Kirito." He said nonchalantly, almost as if greeting a long-time friend. "So, you've finally come to fight me..." He continued, taking his stance. "I'd assume you wish to know?" Upon seeing Kirito's perplexed expression, Heathcliff continued, "To know why I trapped everyone in this game? To know why I've subjected you and so many others to this pain?"

Kirito readied himself, looking Heathcliff directly in the eye and waiting a moment before responding. "That... doesn't matter anymore." Kirito replied, "I'm not here for questions, or to fight you. I'm here to kill you." Heathcliff's expression shifted to one of annoyed resentment.

Heathcliff rushed him, keeping his shield raised. As expected, he was slow enough for Kirito to sidestep the thrust. Kirito swung his Elucidator. He knew he wasn't going to accomplish much with the swing, but he at least needed to gauge just how effective Heathcliff was with his shield. To his surprise, Heathcliff swiftly knocked the swing aside, forcing Kirito to backstep as he continued with another thrust.

Heathcliff returned to his stance and began strafing, waiting for Kirito to make the next move. Kirito stepped back once more, staying completely on guard even with the distance between them. _Okay... I can't beat him like that... I'm going to have to push my speed advantage as far as I can... Keep him subdued..._

Kirito charged, striking before Heathcliff even had time to fully brace himself, and began attacking in a flurry of slashes and thrusts from every angle he could. He made sure to keep Heathcliff's sword arm behind his shield, ensuring that he remained in a defensive spot. Heathcliff managed a few pokes past his shield, but Kirito dodged and parried them.

Kirito raised his arm and tried to thrust over his shield, aiming at Heathcliff's helmless head. Heathcliff knocked aside the strike, thrusting his blade and forcing Kirito to step back, though he quickly closed the distance. Instead of continuing slashing, Kirito shifted his weight and kicked the shield, slightly exposing Heathcliff's stomach. He thrust Dark Repulser, only to have the strike parried and remind him that even if he made it past the shield, his opponent wasn't defenseless. However unfazed, he continued his assault. He slightly lowered himself, slashing upward with Dark Repulser. Just as Kirito hoped for, Heathcliff moved his shield slightly to his right to block the attack. Quickly raising himself, Kirito thrust Elucidator past the top of the shield, aiming the strike directly at Heathcliff's exposed face.

Heathcliff leaped backwards. Kirito took the moment catch his breath, noticing that his opponent's health bar now rested at about eighty-five percent. As Heathcliff slightly lowered his shield, Kirito saw a long gash running along the side of the man's face; blood already dripping down his jaw and onto his armor. "I see... you've clearly been planning for this battle." The man said panting. "But... if you seriously thought this would be just like any other fight against a player, you're sadly mistaken."

To Kirito's surprise, Heathcliff dropped his shield into the snow and dirt, bursting into tiny blue fragments hardly a second later, much like if it were a slain mob. The man placed both hands on his sword as the weapon was engulfed in a brilliant azure light. Heathcliff said in a far more sinister tone than he used minutes ago, "You could've never prepared for this." The light faded, revealing a massive greatsword longer than the man was tall and with twice the width of either of Kirito's swords. Kirito felt his heartbeat quickening. Heathcliff was certainly right; changing weapons entirely mid-fight was one of the last things he was expecting; and to a weapon completely capable of countering his, no less.

_"He'll be far more aggressive now..." _Kirito thought to himself, "..._but he'll still be slower than me. I'll just have to stay reactive and keep up the pressure."_

Heathcliff quickly stepped forward and swung. The sheer length of his weapon would also pose a challenge. Kirito would have to be much more careful about choosing when to attack, as his opponent now had a much more significant advantage than before: reach.

Heathcliff swung again. Kirito dashed towards his opponent the moment the blade passed. Heathcliff swiftly stepped back as Kirito swung, though his Elucidator managed to scrape his chestplate. Heathcliff thrust his sword as Kirito stepped diagonally past it, countering with a thrust from Dark Repulser and aiming for a small un-armored portion of the man's bicep. However, his blade was simply deflected by Heathcliff's gauntlet.

"_Trading blows with this is the last thing I want to do..." _Kirito thought to himself as he danced between Heathcliff's brisk attacks, "_But he's smart enough to keep his head - his weak point - out of reach. It will take all my strength to thrust through his chestplate, and the windup a blow like that would take would leave me way too open. My only chance would be to block with one sword while attacking with the other, but his sword carries way too much momentum for me to block it effectively. I'll just have to get hits in when I can and wait for him to get reckless." _

Kirito knew though that that would be much easier said than done. He could feel himself already tiring. He couldn't dodge forever.

Heathcliff raised his sword above his head, continuing with a downward slash. "_Now!" _Kirito yelled internally as he sidestepped the attack and immediately countered with a downward slash from both of his blades in unison, aiming at the small area just above his elbow. Elucidator scratched the pauldron, but Dark Repulser met flesh. Kirito saw his opponent's health bar take a small hit. It wasn't much, but it was progress.

However, Kirito wasn't expecting his opponent to immediately continue attacking. Kirito leaped backwards, his opponent's blade even managing to scrape across his chest. His armor completely absorbed the glancing blow. Kirito felt his back slam into the snow-kissed ground. He had to completely fall back to avoid the blow. Heathcliff leaped after him, blade raised high above his head. Kirito barely managed to roll away, simultaneously bringing himself back to his feet and backing away as Heathcliff's blade plunged into the dirt.

Thankfully, Heathcliff momentarily ceased his onslaught. Both of them were panting heavily. Kirito felt a slight bit of reassurance seeing himself still at full health. If he could manage to keep this up, he stood a surefire chance at winning.

Heathcliff's breathing eased. "Heh, you're doing a lot better than I thought you would." _How could he have already caught his breath after a series of attacks like that? _ "However... that's just all the more reason to not show any mercy!" He swiftly regained his stance and continued attacking. He kept his blade noticeably lower and made the slash more horizontal, forcing Kirito to jump backwards rather than sidestep. Heathcliff quickly changed his grip and thrust. Kirito took his chance; using Dark Repulser to parry, he lunged forward, aiming Elucidator directly at his opponent's throat.

To Kirito's disbelief, Heathcliff had taken his left hand off of the grip of his sword faster than Kirito could blink, deflecting the thrust with his gauntlet and using the momentum to punch Kirito squarely in the jaw. He felt his feet leave the ground a moment before thudding back into the snow. It took Kirito a moment to realize he had been launched through the air by a simple punch. Laboring to lift his head, he saw Heathcliff standing a good ten feet away, smirking and regaining his stance. Kirito glanced up at his healthbar, which had been reduced by a solid one-sixth, at least. As he brought himself back to his feet, it became clear why. The slightest movement of his jaw made almost the entire right side of his face feel like it had been slammed by a cinder block. _So this is what I'm really up against..._

Heathliff thrust his blade again. This time following a similar tactic, Kirito parried with Dark Repulser and used Elucidator to thrust. This time, he could already see Heathcliff's hand shifting to block the blow, however, instead of following through towards his opponent's neck, he lowered the blade at the last moment, aiming for his armpit. The blade met flesh. Instead of backing off, Kirito continued his assault. Heathcliff seemed to be panicking, frantically raising his arm to deflect the blow.

It would be a risky move, but at the close distance Kirito was from his opponent, Heathcliff would at least have difficulty swinging his greatsword effectively. With nearly all the strength he could muster, Kirito thrust forward both of his blades, both aiming at the neck, though one slightly more delayed than the other. Sparks flew as one of the blows was knocked aside, but the other, to Kirito's astonishment, Heathcliff managed to weave past.

Heathcliff swung downward as he simultaneously leaped away from his opponent. "_Damn it!" _Kirito internally shouted, barely managing to dodge as the blade whisked past the tips of his fingers. He immediately began scrambling back up to his feet after landing on his side in the snow.

Heathcliff followed his attack with an upward slash. Having still not completely recovered, Kirito jumped backwards with what little force he could manage. His opponent's blade met flesh. Kirito saw his own blood splatter in his peripheral vision as he staggered back to his feet. Heathcliff ceased his attack, a sadistic grin now present on his face.

While he felt an unholy, sharp pain just above his left elbow, Kirito didn't notice the numbness of the rest of his left arm until he saw what rested in the snow between him and his opponent. His left arm had been completely _severed. _

He glanced at his health bar as the limb disintegrated into light blue polygons, leaving Dark Repulser resting in the snow. A solid one-third of his health had been chipped off. Blood lightly trickled from the wound; his health bar falling at an almost perplexing small rate considering the would. "_At least," _he thought, remembering the auxiliary effect of his armor , "_I won't have to worry much about the bleeding damage." _In fact, the effect seemed to practically nullify the damage. The dripping of the blood was already decreasing in tempo, and what little damage his health bar had received amounted to at most five percent. Unfortunately, while at least the bleeding had stopped, the pain had hardly subsided one bit.

Fighting against an opponent this powerful with only one arm was already challenging enough, but now, he could hardly think clearly because of the abhorrent pain. Not only that, but the fight had already dragged on for several minutes. The longer the fight lasted, the closer he would be to losing; he was already feeling fatigue. _"If I can just..." _he began thinking to himself, "..._land a single, solid attack on his neck, that might be enough to secure victory."_

A single blow. It would be a massive, all-or-nothing gamble. He took his stance, adjusting so his wounded arm would be out of the way. Heathcliff charged, initiating with another horizontal slash. Kirito back pedaled, keeping just out of reach from his opponent's sword as he unleashed a lengthy flurry of slashes.

At last, his moment came. Kirito noticed it the moment the blow's windup had initiated. Heathcliff leveled his blade and thrust. Kirito lunged towards his opponent, every move made with the intent to kill. He raised Elucidator, slightly redirecting the incoming strike and turning himself so the blade would glance off of his chest plate.

Kirito delayed the attack just slightly as Heathcliff frantically tried to deflect it using his gauntlet. His delay succeeded in leaving Heathcliff open. With all the strength he had left, Kirito thrust his blade forward one final time.

The unmistakable sound of a blade sinking into flesh was heard. Kirito looked up to see Elucidator completely piercing the man's neck, with the tip of the blade sticking out from the back of his skull. His opponent's health bar had shrunken down to zero. Deep crimson blood trickled from his mouth and his wound, running down the edge of the sword.

Kirito retracted his blade as Heathcliff dropped his sword. The man stepped back, clutching at his throat and falling to his knees, breaths and words replaced by grotesque gargles. His eyes widened, the primordial horror of death taking hold as he fell back. Heathcliff took his final breath, preceding a moment of eerie silence. The man's body dissolved as the massage, 'Congratulations, you have killed the final boss of Sword Art Online!', appeared in faded grey text in front of him.

* * *

Kirito dropped to his knees, panting. A smaller message appeared on his HUD, just below his health bar. 'Final boss has been slain! Logout function re-enabled!'. He assumed the same message had been received by everyone else in Aincrad. He shifted through the menus, finally coming to view the player count. He breathed a deep sigh of relief and satisfaction as the player count began to fall drastically. Within the first couple of seconds, nearly one thousand had logged out. "Finally..."

Now that the boss had been slain, the boss arena was now open. Kirito heard the sound of boots crunching through the snow behind him, increasing in volume and pace, becoming frantic as what he could only guess meant she noticed the blood around him alongside his severed left arm. Out of the corner of his eye, Kirito saw Asuna's white boots flecked with snowflakes. She lowered herself to her knees, placing her hand on his cheek and tilting his head as she leaned in, kissing him slowly and intimately.

"Where's Yuuki?" Kirito asked softly as the two of them released.

"She already logged out. She said she was most eager to see her sister again."

"Yeah, that sounds like her." He said, grinning as he sifted through his inventory and drank a healing potion. He let out a small sigh as the pain subsided and his left arm returned, armor and all.

Kirito turned towards Asuna and embraced her, smiling as he thought of all of the things the two of them would finally be able to do. Share their true first kiss, enjoy their lives without a near-constant threat of combat, become married...

The two of them released as a glimmer of sunlight peeked through the otherwise overcast sky, shining on the two of them. The moment truly felt like a scene in a painting. The two of them opened up their menus, scrolling down to the 'System' tab. After two long years, the moment they had yearned for so greatly was at last upon them.

With their hands clasped together and gazes fixed intently on each other, they reached toward their respective menus and tapped 'Logout'.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE

I hope you all have enjoyed! I won't be marking this story as complete just yet, because as unlikely as it may be, I will consider writing an epilogue chapter of sorts based on the feedback I get. But until then, this is the end, I suppose. It's been a long two years, and I would never have completed this without all of the feedback I got. For what may be the final time, I thank all of you, from the very bottom of my heart.


End file.
